Too wOke for The American Dream

Tags

a woman's choice, art is activism, cdc, flint water crisis, hurricane katrina, marijuana justice act, nbc, schools not prisons, social justice, war on drugs

i’m too wOke for the american dream…
if they ain’t tryna kill us, they’re tryna turn us to feigns.
the country’s divided without the wall and it ain’t got nothing to do with skin color; stay wOke my brother, it’s all about capitalist green.
all i know is: the walls are closing in on trump and it’s getting hard to overlook the walls of justice as tough on crime proponents push to legalize green.
how am i supposed to care about your opioid crisis or your medical excuse for drug use when your prisons are filled with my brothers and sisters that tried to scale the walls of justice with triple beam dreams?

when we gonna talk about the unbalanced scale of justice or how the war on drugs mandate fostered the most horrific holocaust to date?
i don’t understand how conservatives are so pro-life when it comes to a woman’s decision yet so tolerant to our brothers and sisters being buried alive in prisons.
why should i worry about a wall at the mexico border, when our brothers and sisters in flint, michigan have been left out to dry amid food deserts and lead-contaminated water?

flint can’t drink tears or well wishes;
my heart is heavy; first they flooded our neighborhoods with drugs then they bombed they levees.
the flint water crisis is biological warfare!
why the cdc put a patent on the ebola virus?
these white supremacists (oops i meant biochemists) have been killing us off for years.

when we gonna talk about the mass murderers that manufactured aids and hiv?
i wonder why they ain’t want bill cosby to purchase nbc.
why we can’t get states to mandate the marijuana justice act before they legalize dispensaries?
i don’t wanna see the world up in smoke while my brothers and sisters with drug convictions are still sitting in penitentiaries.
so no! i don’t care to hear how medical marijuana stops your children from having seizures; f’ you and your legislative bill, last time i checked: our communities are still paying the price of your stop and frisk seizures.

–@StevieStreets #artisactivism #poem | Too wOke for The American Dream

🎨: unknown

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February 21, 1965

Tags

el haj malik el shabazz, I am a revolutionary, i am Malcolm X, malcolm x, more malcolm than martin, political assassination

February Twenty-First, Nineteen Sixty-Five

The fiery soul of a gallant man was extinguished
Yet the spirit is still alive

As brother Fred Hampton would say:
They can kill the revolutionary
Yet they can’t kill the revolution

In Sixty-Five, they tried to silence the messenger – Malcolm X
Yet his message resounds in 1964 The Black Revolution

It’s been fifty-four years since the political assassination
And the battle cry of freedom still remains in brown eyes

I know what kind of world I’d like to see
Yet why should I lose my identity before the world hears my freedom-cries?

Why should I exercise nonviolence while the strong arm of the law has a chokehold on my brothers and sisters?

If it’s equal rights and justice for all,
Why does the prison industrial complex overtly produce a genocidal gripping on our brothers and sisters?

When is Uncle Sam gonna be charged with violating human rights?

Imagine BLACK LIVES MATTER when the fight for civil rights is expanded to human rights

It’s time for the Black Man to come to the defense of the Black Man;
When the Black Man in this country aids the Black Man in that country
And the Black Man in that country aids the Black Man in this country,
As Black Men unite all around the world,
We’ll have a real revolution

And I ain’t talking that We Shall Overcome,
That is no revolution

“Revolutions will never be won by turning the other cheek!”
As Brother Malcolm used to speak

But don’t mind me;
I just had to take a moment to pay homage to El Haj Malik

–@StevieStreets long live #elhajmalikelshabazz #poem | February 21, 1965

The Strings Tying Us Together (Defining Culture)

Tags

band together, peace love and harmony, the arts, the common ground collective, the culture of us, the key of life, the symphony of life

The ARTS tend to bring us together…

Even in a war torn world,
poetry – music – and art would always string together

In the symphony of life,
That little art in heART shall help us heART the ARTS and connect us forever

Although, at times, we may find it hard to string together common ground,
As we orchestrate our differences in the key of life, the culture of us shall resound

As the inclusiveness of the violin, viola, cello, double bass, and harp string together a beautiful sound,
So too shall the diversity of us create harmony

For the strings tying us together shall always be tied to peace – love – and harmony,
the common ground collective shall always be found in the beauty of banding together

My poems are not poems…
Yet my heartstrings strike a chord amongst those that see the beauty in banding together

And I say that to say:
How long must ye single each other out before ye band together?

As the poets put words together,
The musicians bring instruments together,
And the artists blend colors together,
So too must all walks of mankind come together

As dialect is not detected in laughter,
Joy is the instrument that brings forth the cliché “that is music to my ears!”

For how sweet the sound of a foreign dialect,
When love is the universal language and common ground is shared

To become familiar with your neighbor’s traditions and customs is to erase your fears

-StevieStreets #thecultureofus #poem | The Strings Tying Us Together (Defining Culture)

・・・

#codeofthestreets:

“When we’re defining culture, it’s often about how you can turn something that’s not yours into your own. I always felt that Bach was my music — I lived my whole life living and experiencing this music almost every day. It’s in my skin, it’s in my bones, it’s in my memory – it’s in all my experiences. And I believe that until we stop becoming human, Bach’s music is going to be continually listened to, because of the kind of understanding that he brings to human nature. It is one way that #cultureconnectsus.”

-@yoyoma.official | Prélude to Bach’s Cello Suite No.1 Six Evolutions

Peace to Mark Clark and Fred Hampton

Tags

black lives matter, black panther party for self-defense, homage, I am a revolutionary, I am Fred Hampton

mourning vibes:

Wasn’t no fear, wasn’t no compromise… -Fred Hampton | #iamarevolutionary #powertothepeople #youcantkilltherevolution

・・・
#codeofthestreets:
We’d like to take a moment to celebrate the life of Fred Hampton
We invite you to never forget the day that the FBI and Chicago PD murdered Mark Clark and Fred Hampton

Peace to the ancestors, Mark Clark and Fred Hampton

I AM A REVOLUTIONARY
I AM MARK CLARK
I AM FRED HAMPTON

It’s 49 years to date since them pigs played judge – jury – and executioner

Enter Black America anywhere in the United States,
Them pigs are still playing judge – jury – and executioner

O and The Justice Department it’s just a department…
When we gon’ get justice for all the Mark Clark’s and Fred Hampton’s?

We chant BLACK LIVES MATTER
They mark us for death like they did Mark Clark and Fred Hampton

Dear White People
In case you missed it
We hashtag black lives matter✊🏾
cause the blind eye of justice is still saying Die Nigger Die!

But don’t mind me
I’m just sick and tired of the Black on Black rhetoric
Our brothers and sisters are doing numbers and them alphabet boys want us to die

Yet there will be no fear,
There will be no compromise
ALL THE POWER TO THE PEOPLE

O! All lives matter now huh?
Question:
How is it that those sworn to protect and serve only manage to kill Black People?
Why is it that the epidemic incarceration rates seem to be underpopulated with white people?

When we gon’ talk about COINTELPRO and set my FREEDOM FIGHTERS FREE?

There’s way too many Black Panthers still being held as political prisoners
But don’t take it from me
If you know like I know
NONE OF US ARE FREE, UNTIL ALL OF US ARE FREE

–@StevieStreets #homage #poem | Peace to Mark Clark & Fred Hampton

February 14, 1991

Tags

happy birthday, homage, schlobohm, schroeder street, the hole

February 14, 1991

I’ll never forget the day; I’ll never forget the year

 

I remember when them dirt-bags tried to jump and you suddenly appeared

 

You stood there to make sure I got a fair one, they ain’t wanna shoot the fair one

 

Edwin and I never got chased after that day in ‘85,

Lord knows I was so glad to run into you and Saint-Claire that day in ‘85

 

My mind state was “I might be young but I can still hold a gun,” after you died

 

I was riddled with so many questions – at first glance I had to second-guess the who’s, how’s, and why’s – after you died

 

Sometimes, I still wonder: who could kill the coolest man alive?
You’re still the coolest dude I ever knew, dead or alive

 

It’s been 27 years to date and I still wish you were here

Sometimes I see you with the LL Kangol, frontin’ in the square

 

Heaven only knows what I would do to hear you say: “if you don’t look like your cousin Taylor ha, I swear”

 

It’s been 27 years to date and I still wish you were here

 

Sometimes, I wonder: how it feels to celebrate a birthday knowing your twin is not here

 

Long story short, cousin Dan – you was the man,
I just wanted to take a moment to let you know you still got love out here

 

–@StevieStreets #homage #poem | February 14, 1991

 

Deep AF

Tags

anxiety, depression, emotionally scarred, mental health, you are enough

I’m no stranger to displaced anger and disfunction.

I know what it is to live when anxiety is suffocating
And depression is crippling
And the propensity to be something forces you to function when you’d rather do nothing.

When shall your wounds welcome their scabs?

To heal a wound, you have to stop touching it.

Sometimes I’m coping with mixed emotions like I’m so HAPPY yet so SAD…

Often I’m dealing with the duality of mental health and my best self like
Ego is the enemy and YOU ARE ENOUGH – even in your ruggedness.

Truth be told,
The vibe never lies and energy is everything…
Long story short:
We long for love in view of the fact that we don’t know how to accept it.

I see too many adults living with codependency issues ’cause the child within was neglected.

Question:
Why do hurt people hurt people?
Why do mental health memes cut deep?

MY POEMS ARE NOT POEMS…
I once read: “If you don’t heal what hurtcyou, you’ll bleed on people that didn’t cut you.”
And thought “that’s deep!”

–@StevieStreets #BlackMentalHealthMatters #poem | Deep AF

How Do You Shelve Books?

Tags

#datlibrarylife, haiku, interpolations, LIBRARY DIARIES, straight outta zoo passes, the circ department, the stacks

How do you shelve books?
Do you push them to the back
Or even the front?

Edge the books! Or else…
You may not know how to shelve,
If you’re not edging. 🤓

–@StevieStreets #librarydiares #haiku | How Do You Shelve Books? & Edge The Books! Or Else…

・・・
#datlibrarylife:
Books misshelved everywhere
Pages in the stacks reading books, placing books anywhere
I can’t walk through the stacks ’cause the books are pushed to the back
I don’t need Google, my Librarian knows everything
And I’m STRAIGHT OUTTA ZOO PASSES, Neon King Kong standing on my back
Can’t even read Unshelved or LibraryComic, mid-range migraine is back

Don’t push me
‘Cause I’m close to the edge
I’m trying not to lose my head
Uh-huh-huh, huh, huh
When the books don’t align
It makes me wonder how I keep from going under
When the books don’t align
It makes me wonder how I keep from going under

–@StevieStreets | Close To The Edge (An Interpolation of The Message by Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five)

THE LIBRARY

Tags

#ilovelibraries, #librariesmatter, #librariestransform, amazon, forbes magazine, public libraries, the economy

THE LIBRARY is the most important civic institution, to me.

Hashtag I LOVE LIBRARIES;
They have served as an university, for me.

My professors, Librarians;
My degree, a PhD.

And the tuition;
Ahhh, the tuition has been Ab-So-Lute-Ly FREE!

Hashtag LIBRARIES MATTER;
A good library is essential to a thriving community.

Where there is accessible education,
Civic engagement,
And positive recreation,
You will find a strong economy.

Hashtag LIBRARIES TRANSFORM;
They help the uneducated become educated,
They give hope to the hopeless,
They saved a wretch like me.

Hashtag LIBRARIES serve as safe spaces;
They provide human interaction to those who have been cast out of society,
They offer a positive means of escape for those who struggle with sobriety,
They give the unwanted a place where they long to be.

Dear Forbes and Economists:
How could you fathom Amazon replacing Public Libraries?

Don’t you know,
Economies are built around Public Libraries?

I don’t think you understand what Public Libraries do for the economy!
Public Libraries help develop the workforce via FREE career resources that allow citizens to obtain employment or launch a business, in which it generates tax revenues into the economy.

Long story short,
Without the Public Library, there will be no economy.

 

–@StevieStreets #librarydiares #poem | THE LIBRARY

Find Your Tribe

Tags

empaths, i came i saw i left early, introversion, introverts, self-talk, small talk, understand my silence

FIND YOUR TRIBE:
Don’t hide the madness,
Find your tribe and love them hard;
For they are the ones that help you find your way home.

Peace to the beautiful souls that understand my silence;
For they are the ones that know the difference between being lonely and being alone.

Special thanks to the Introverts and the Empaths that understand my introvert problems like:
Why do I feel more lonesome when more people are around?

Why do I find it hard so to stfu when people I enjoy come around?

What causes a person to feel more alone in a room full of people than when they’re actually alone?

Why is small talk such a big deal?
Why do I prefer self-talk more than talking on the phone?

Is it me, or do the I CAME I SAW I LEFT EARLY memes really hit home?

Can the hashtag stay close to people who feel like sunlight credo illuminate the path back home?

Like a flower leans towards the sun, we tend to gravitate towards an inner glow.

My poems are not poems…
And I say that to say:
I’m not antisocial, I can’t fake being social;
If it entails fake smiling,
I probably won’t go.

I wrote this piece for those that know:
I’m not saying I don’t want the invite,
I still want the invite;
Although, we all know, I’m not gonna go.

I’m still a social being, at least.
Yeah, I disappear at times; it’s my thing.
I just like being at peace.
I’m close to very few people,
But those few people mean everything to me;
In case you didn’t know.

Happiness is an inside job
Yet you need to surround yourself with people that are good for your mental health.

Even an Introvert exhibits extroverted tendencies in an environment that allows one the comfort of being one’s self.

Normal is a myth and conformance is bad for one’s health;
If nothing else:
KNOW THYSELF!

-@StevieStrees #poem | Find Your Tribe

Hashtag Black Panther

Tags

black buying power, black lives matter, black panther movie, black panther party for self-defense, collective economics, vibranium, wakanda forever

Now that everyone is talkin’ ‘bout the black panther movie…

 

Can we talk about the Black Panther Party for Self Defense?

 

Can I get a Power to the People Forever?

Can you grip your fingers together

And raise a clenched-fist, one time, for Bobby and Huey?

 

Can we free our Political Prisoners

And arm our brothers & sisters with legal defense?

 

Now that everyone is talkin’ ‘bout the black panther movie…

 

May I advise, The Revolution Will Not Be Televised?

Can I get a HANDS OFF ASSATA FOREVER?

 

Would it be ill-advised to surmise Black Revolutionaries beyond a movie?

When we gon’ realize Black Buying Power beyond the opening week of a movie?

 

Can we get all the brothers & sisters in the streets struggling to come together?

Can we build our own homes,

Give our brothers & sisters a loan,

And open our own grocery stores?

Can you call upon the ancestors

And answer the call to support those that look like you and yours?

Can we teach unity,

Build our own communities,

And mandate Black Dollars Matter Forever?

 

Now that everyone is talkin’ ‘bout the black panther movie…

When we gon’ realize the world ain’t nothing but a B Movie?

And someone’s always comin’ to save the day in the B Movie.

 

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised…

No one is coming to save the day,

It’s not a movie!

 

My Freedom Fighters Ain’t Free,

The leaders of the Free World don’t move me.

 

When I talk about The Panthers, I ain’t talkin’ ‘bout the movie.

Yet I can draw parallels between The Movement and the movie.

 

Melanin is supercharged with sun energy,

Antagonists try to claw the Mali vibes from our cranium.

Sorta like Klaue when it comes to vibranium,

They aim to antagonize and drain our energy.

 

Let’s talk about synergy…

our kinetics are Kemetic,

The Panthers mobilized a united front in every major city.

 

In the spirit of FREE ANGELA;

Can we SET OUR PEOPLE FREE,

In every major city?

 

Now that everyone is talkin’ ‘bout the black panther movie…

 

Can we FREE THE PANTHERS that fought for our way of life in the sixties?

If it’s WAKANDA FOREVER,

Can we bring our Political Refugees home?

Can we talk about how many Panthers died at the hands of the FBI in the sixties?

 

May I ask why my brothers & sisters were incarcerated when they opposed hatred?

Why we still got brothers & sisters detained for joining the fight equal rights in sixties?

 

How did you forget about YOU and YOURS?

How we gon’ smash box office records,

Yet fail to break open prison doors?

 

If it’s WAKANDA FOREVER,

Can I get an I WON’T BE FREE UNTIL ALL BLACK PEOPLE FREE?

Can we scale the walls of justice and SET OUR PEOPLE FREE?

 

May I ask how many of our Panthers are still caged in penitentiaries?

Can you explain to me: Why our Freedom Fighters Ain’t Free?

 

Tell me: How can we smash box office records,

Yet fail to break open those prison doors?

When did you forget about YOU and YOURS?

 

If what’s good for the goose is good for the gander,

When you gonna see past the propaganda?

 

If we can contribute to smashing box office records,

Can we start a collective to build Black owned Banks and Grocery Stores?

 

If you can contribute to smashing box office records,

Why you can’t contribute to building better schools for YOU and YOURS?

 

If REPRESENTATION MATTERS,

When you gonna back Black Filmmakers and stop begging Hollywood for better images of YOU and YOURS?

 

Now that everyone is talkin’ ‘bout the black panther movie…

 

When we gonna talk about the Black Panther Party for Self Defense?

When we gon’ smash those prison doors or get our Freedom Fighters some legal defense?

 

–@StevieStreets #blackpanther #poem | Hashtag Black Panther