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This poem was nominated for Best Poem of 2006, written by an African Kid
Quote:
When I Born, I Black
When I grow up, I Black
When I go in sun, I Black
When I sick, I Black, and
When I die, I still Black
And U White fella,
When u born, u pink
When u grow up, u white
When u go in sun, u red
When u cold, u blue
When u Scared, u yellow
When u sick, u green, and
When u die, u gray
And--------- -----
You calling me colored??
--Paramour
So heart touching :frown:
its an adaptation/plagiarism of an older 'poem' - i'd say the original author was probably (close to being) an adult himself (btw. you didn't provide the source):Quote:
Originally Posted by ParamouR
Quote:
by an Anonymous pupil of King Edward VI School, Birmingham, UK.
Found in The children's book of poems, prayers and meditations ed. Liz Attenborough (Element Books, 1989)
Code:http://www.poetrylibrary.org.uk/queries/faps/#27
as for the actual poem, its amusing, though quite incorrect (even when viewed as simply enhancing differences)
- black people aren't really black but rather black-ish/brown-ish/dark-skinned and white people aren't really white but rather white-ish/pink-ish/pale-skinned), though obviously some terms should be used to distinguish between races, so why not use this customary linguistic approximation
- black skin changes color (the nuances) while growing up as well, the same goes for 'being in the sun', 'being sick' or 'dying' - the difference is that it is more difficult to notice the change due to the darker pigment which tends to obscure these changes
- black, white,... = colors, so the term 'colored' (having some color) skin actually applies to all of them
- notice how specific words have the first letter capitalized: Born...Black, U White...Scared (pretty obvious message, eh?), the other color names are written in lower case, meaning they're insignificant/lesser or the person in such a state is 'less worthy', implying how only pure/proud/healthy black people & white people matter - basically, the poem itself is written with the intent to emphasize racial distinction/identity/superiority, ridicule the only worthy opposing/threatening one (in this case: white) and finally to address the term 'colored' (which is afaik not being actively used for several decades so it doesn't really fit in 2006), written in a usa-flavored tone (u, fella, yellow), resembling to something one might expect to find in (gangsta-lite) hip-hop/rap lyrics
- as said before, i find the poem amusing, but definitely not touching, not to mention unworthy of being published as a part of something called 'the children's book of poems, prayers and meditations' (which happened due to either ignorance or was intentional, the latter being more probable) or nominated as some kind of an achievement (though, upon closer examination there's more in it than meets the eye/ear)
poem messages summary:
- born black = proud, true, a personal defining characteristic
- black = superior, strong, unchangeable, brave
- others = inferior, except for pure white (the nemesis image or antithesis, notice the usage of fella=fellow=man=equal in rank=White=U in capital letters)
- white = can be strong but is unstable and prone to inferiority (proof provided in the examples, notice the absence of fear & cold in the 'black verse'), cowardly
- colored = incorrect term (hinting that the opposite is accurate)
- no racial equality was mentioned
the writer(s) are obviously males fantasizing about their own racial superiority, posing as victims (the name of the poem, its identifiable theme when observing superficially), using this presumption to launch a counterattack (in a similar manner) and prove their point, while having some fun at the opponent's expense in the process - furthermore they seem to have external help as well (publishers/nominating personnel), steering these messages towards the minds of children/teens (book audience), while their opinions/attitudes/beliefs are still highly shapeable/malleable, which is naturally very tempting to various control/power hungry societal elements
generally, the racial issue(s) are artificially created & inflated problems (propagated by fanatics/sheeple & herdsmen) which essentially need no solving, as they would eventually solve themselves in a natural way (localized/partial mixing & grouping according to various prioritized preferences) - race itself is not problematic, however actions aligned with delusions of racial superiority or with ideas regarding the necessity of intervention on behalf of some illusory ideal (aka greater good) may very well be
inflating/praising one's own racial identity won't make one stronger/wiser/..., it is simply a physical characteristic - to build one's identity on such pillars equals self-deception - one's true identity (true self) is not built while living (those would be temporary identities or roles or masks or veils), it is searched for within oneself over time
anyways, how about a more relevant self-made haiku poem on the subject?
a person approaches on his high horse
he calls me colored and receives a laconic answer:
indeed, and so are you
Lieber Gott mach mich satt, das der andere nichts mehr hat ^^
mfg
wie waere es mit: Lieber Gott bitte hilf mir um satt zu sein, bin mir sicher andere bleiben dabei auch nicht ohne Deine Hilfe/Bewertung allein ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by Snitlev
ps. i can translate the above to english if anyone is interested (not sure about keeping the rhyme intact though hehe)