Ode to Black History

Just like Maya

I wish I could write

I wish my words

Would inspire others to join the fight

Like Harriet

I wish I was brave

I’d be so legit

Leading to freedom, today’s modern slaves

I wish I could dream

Like Langston or Martin

I’d come up with great things

To have a part in

And if I was bold

Like Angela Davis

I’d be like Sojourner Truth

I’d be courageous

Or maybe I’d want to be immovable

Like Rosa Parks

I’d want even my sitting

To light a spark

Or what if I could speak

Like Mr. Frederick Douglass

I’d be able to voice the truth

For so many of us

And if like W.E.B. DuBois or Carter G. Woodson

I was smart

I would know where to end

I would know where to start

Yet if I was like Hattie McDaniel

I’d play my part

I’d create and cultivate

I’d perfect my art

If I were a strong leader like Malcolm

With the influence of Martin

Maybe I would soften some hearts

That have been hardened

But even if I’m just Chanel

With limitations

I can still do my part

To motivate this nation

If black history

Means so much to me

I’d put into practice

All that I could be

I’d learn from their examples

And I’d do my best

I would be who that had in mind

When they were on their quests

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