"Amandla Awethu!"
Roar it with me,
amen brother.
Can't you see
the racists smother?
"Vat Afrikaans en druk dit"
We don't want it,
we don't need it's prose
we will take this hit.
Afrikaans goes.
"Amandla Awethu!"
Swaying from foot to foot,
thousands of young cries
echo in the dust bowls of freedom looted.
Today our leader, fists raised, dies.
"Disperse, this is illegal, disperse."
Scared voices charge into anger
like stallions recently broken.
Their flanks quiver, anticipating danger,
words drip bravery, only fear remains unspoken.
"Disperse, disperse, no ... fire at will."
Instead of rubber, they are live,
young rage crumples, their voices gone.
Children, mere babies, taking the dive
into immortality, never will they be outdone.
"Amandla Awethu!"
Keep them safe in your bosom mother,
show them the bullets only stemmed the flow.
Sing to them of moments when all become brothers
and the anger dissolves, the pain goes ...
Tell them of the moment when
a war cry shouted in rage
became:
"Ubuntu"
Author notes
"Amandla Awethu", means "Strength is Ours" and was a battle cry uttered at Sharpeville in 1976, when black students protested the use of Afrikaans in their schools.
"Vat Afrikaans en druk dit"
Means, take your language and stick it where the sun don't shine. *Smiles*.
That day, rubber bullets were replaced by live rounds and kids died. Their legacy is one of pain, but most of all victory.
Finally, there is a new battle cry - "ubuntu" - which means community. It is just a pity that so many innocents had to die to achieve equality.
A contest entry
- Poetic challenge: A New Beginning!!! by luckynsincere.
525 points, ended March 25, 2008, 15 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Please tell me what you think
Comments
1 - 9 of 9
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AMAZING B!!!!!
One can tell by your words that you are South African ... ~shivers down my spine~
you have outdone yourself with this one my friend!
Death comes too easily to those who are ignorant - we are ALL the same inside, why judge by what we see?
touche - excellent!
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Wow. I have goosebumps all over. Very touching, powerful and unfortunately very real. You did a great job.
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wow! Powerful. What a shame... as most bloodshed is. I enjoyed the pure approach that you took with this... seeing as racism, no matter which contry or region within, is a touchy subject. You maintained within decent boundaries, yet sailed over limits. what I guess I mean is that you say such things, and as your opinion will touches the reader. WELL DONE!
At the close of this contest, there will be a link left for you that will take you to a group.... it is required that you join the group to continue in the challenge.
good luck, and we look forward to reading more of you in the future
Mel
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Thank you Mel. I tried not to offend at all. I tried to show the heart ache of 16 July 1976 but I must admit I toned it down. It was hard living through those times, but the topic of race remains sensitive. All of the anger will pass and then one day people will wake up and see fellow human beings instead of white and black. I guess I also wanted to say that we need to remember in order to never repeat the sad defeat of yesteryear. Thank you for your wonderfully insightful comment.
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A wonderful edit ~
Hi Tanzy.......your editing has made a whole world of difference.....very nice!
Thank you for taking the time to promote your work as best as it can be :)
Bear ~
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Hi tanzy :)
It is so good to see your quill spilling some of its' powerful ink again :)
Take out *just* in this line....>>
*like stallions just recently broken*.....when you used recently, we knew it to be *just* :)
This line here is awkward..>>>
*Keep them safe in your bosom, mother
show them the bullets only stemmed the flow.*I believe your comma is misplaced?...maybe it should be after mother?....not sure how you are saying this for Flow ~
The last stanza is a tad bit confusing as well......if I was to write it from your def.'s....it would read..>>>>
(Tell them of the moment, when strength is ours, became community)
....slightly confusing....but let me begin your review now :)
I think this is one of the best writes......and oh.....welcome to the Poetic Challenge contest!
:)
Yes, you have managed to make me sit up and take notice in your thoughts....even with the awkward lines, I still found my way through your spilled ink and was very surprised to see such a wonderful, yet uncommon Theme....and you know how I love uncommon :)
I will be looking for Power and Impact, as well as Lasting Impression during the Rounds.....so give me your best Tanzy....don't hold back....and show off your talents which I know you possess :)
I shall be much more critical when we get rolling.....so hang in there.....you have the ability to win this Challenge.....and so does many others I have reviewed.....therefore, bring your best, or you're gonna be left behind wondering what happend :)
Be well and God bless,
Bear ~
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I edited a bit just to get the glaring issues out of the way. Thanks for the wonderful comment. I have missed your comments. They always make me work harder.
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Very good write. I didn't know many of these terms until I read them in the author notes. Thanks for sharing this. I always like to learn something new. I liked the part of fear remaining unspoken. I think those words hold a lot of truth. A lot of the time we are afraid, but we don't like to admit it to ourselves. Good luck in the contest.
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Arzab, yes the unspoken fears have run so much of our relationships and communication with people of other color. I wanted to share with this how the death of children eventually led to a unity of diversity where people actually talked to each other and could reach out and forgive, at least to some extent. It is an important personal issue for me and I am glad it taught you something too. Your comments always mean so much to me. Thank you for being an unfailing friend.
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