Kelechi Emetuche age 14 Benjamin Franklin High School New Orleans, Louisiana
Mama Africa A blanket of harsh summers Unending poverty, Trampled beauty, raw power and lion pride. She gave to me unyielding strength, Natural grace, Stubbornness of an ox. Back full of heavy burdens, Hands weary from work, she carried me Over her shoulder Across her desert Milled breasts Sorrowful rivers of tears. Sweeping cries for her people. No, no they are not free. Not free of the chains of poverty and inequality. Full of life, she cannot show it. She remains barren. Teeming with riches, she cannot wear it. Her will is broken. Battle cries, she cannot stop them Genocides, she cannot understand them. She Mlows-‐ blood red The pain she’s in from bloodshed. Light skin, have I. Don’t remember her bright skies. Six years without her touch Her smell, Her face, Her smile, I’m lost. She brings us all, All her children together. Customs passed down forever Established from times before, Ancient rites performed through generations. Potential yet to be cut. A raw diamond. Mystical languages that speak of her greatness. Hand in hand, we come along Voices raised, we sing her song. Mama Africa, where I belong, Mama Africa, where I’m from.
WHERE I’M FROM: POWERFUL POEMS BY MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS | page 12 Copyright 2010 What Kids Can Do, Inc. (WKCD)