There has always been two Americas. We entered this country two ways, through Ellis Island or
the slave ship. One group had shoes on. The other (slaves) were barefoot. From the beginning,
we were told to pull ourselves up, make mortar without straw. Impossible feats to overcome.
But during these dark days, there has always been a bright spot. God was with us every step of
the way. Against all odds, we still arose. As slaves looked up following that bright north star to
the Promised Land, freedom was still not free. Through blood, terrorism and tears, we still
arose. Black America, don’t ever stop telling our story; the true story of us. Take some time to
research with your children. This poem is to portray some of our story:
"Look at Us Now"
Heads hang low tamed by the whip
Us came marching off these old slave ships
We were strong with intelligent minds
Great men of stature, the beginning of mankind
Loyal to wife, family and friends
But here in America is where it all ends
Kings and Queens in our homeland, majestic we did bow
But just take a look, take a look at us now
Separated whipped sold from our house
No longer a family; man, child, spouse
Massa' took our precious virgin girls
Took their virginity for an old string of pearls
We plowed the fields, planted the corn
Children sold as soon as they were born
Old massa' was mean, called us fools
Couldn't read or write, not allowed in school
Time passed on as we prayed from day to day
Years of work without a thank you or pay
Blood touched blood, treated like dogs
No decent food but the scraps of hogs
They called us winches, suckers and big black bucks
Lord, when will it be over? 'Cause it hurts so much
It took wars, bloodshed and tears
And before it was over there was many nights of fear
Then came the victory with great anticipation
God made it possible with the Great Emancipation
But there was still no relief, no place to go
Massa' wasn't finished cause here comes Jim Crow
Crow was so relentless with his master plan
Clothed in white sheets came the Ku Klux Klan
Straight out of hell in the darkness of the night
Terrifying innocent people trying to live right
They burned their crosses, put torches to our church
With Billy clubs and dogs; treated us like dirt
But God was still working, he raised up a man
He said "I won't take it" and drew a line in the sand
Stop with segregation, dividing of the people
God is not pleased with separate but equal
Martin followed Gandhi, nonviolence. We marched
Singing we shall overcome, we sang from our hearts
We are American and we took our stand
I am somebody; Yes, I am a man
We dared to dream, it was our hope
That God would lead the way, caused we earned the right to vote
Tired of the challenge down with defeat
On the back of buses standing on our feet
The Voting Act was passed, now I need a job
Got to feed my family, I don't want to starve
So Martin got busy, took his last train ride
Blacks wanted equal pay, tired of being denied
Martin made a lot of speeches. He had a dream
He looked over the mountain, this is what he's seen
Men treated equal, not judged by the color of their skin
Brothers, neighbors and yes even friends
He saw a rainbow of men, women and people
Holding hands together, not separated and yes they were all equal
God sent a man to show us how
But boy, oh boy look at us now
Have we forgotten the trials he's brought us from?
Now we are proud but the victory has not been won
From boys to men, we need to be
Put down the drugs, why can't we see?
Pull up your pants, below your knees
God will open doors and he has the keys
For the way is not drugs, money or bling
It was the voice that was silenced, the voice with the dream
That voice can still be heard
God has the answer and it's found in His word
Ship ahoy, ship ahoy, the ships have long gone
God has been with us and America is our home
But take a look around in our neighborhood and school
We were once kings, and now we act like fools
Stop killing your brothers, burying them in ditches
Lift up your black queens, stop calling them bitches
There was a great price paid for you and me
They paid it forward, so let your minds be free
Free to think, to wonder, to dream
Let God in your heart and you can be anything
Let us remember and never forget
The blood that was shed, we owe them a great debt
They marched, bled and cried
We will not turn back, we won't be denied
Now in the White House came a great voice like thunder
A BLACK president, Barack Obama
To you, old slave, who walked behind that plow
I wish you could see us, just take a look at us now.
Jessie Curry (freelance writer, author of "Obama-Rama"), ©2013
