Mutual Love

sex is the fireplace in my living room
a giving of self you can hear
the echo of the sea in a shell
bonds as tender and strong
as stretched iridescent tendons
plucked free.

RIP Javad

This poem is dedicated to the dedicated, eternal brother of the Black Nationalist movement who died this week from pnemonia after having been in a coma and having H1N1.

a brother died in the struggle
not from AIDS, violence or abuse
he carried the weight
of his communities’ ailments
in his earthly body
offered self affirmation
to young people
JAVAD
You will be Remembered.

Look out for us
from afar
the spirit realm’s now
where you reside

* * *

a good brother died
because he carried other’s pain and hurt
and longing and separation
because he ate too many cheeseburgers
take care of yourselves so we don’t lose good brothers and sisters
to more disease

From My Apartment, Sunset Park

slight hues of the highway color my existence
the beams shake like tree trunks
lashing side to side from violent trucks
the branches reach cloudy skies

Tender Omission

intimate breath between our lips

sweet tender kiss(es)

before the parting

there’s captivated eyes

freckles on your cheek

goodbye

hello plump dick

sustenance

a lie

you know the truth

I love you

Palestine

Tear gas bombs exploding over kitchen

table. Pulsing vein in my head.

Sitting with a friend in West Oakland.

We talk about her trip

to Palestine, she stops talking, her eyes

glaze over, shows me the pictures of death.

It’s a new dawn, it’s a new day. It’s a new life. 

Innumerable holes in buildings

children play in the front –

her talking is scattered –

I see the tear gas canisters

exploding above her head

hear their firecracker whisper

smell the burning bodies

the black lost vision.

It’s a new dawn, it’s a new day. It’s a new life.

I see the laughter of the Israeli soldiers

hear the screams of the moms and babies

separated. I see a Palestinian woman

head held low walking courageously alone

to buy groceries for dinner.

I see breaking bread.

It’s a new dawn, it’s a new day. It’s a new life.

Antes

your juice fell on the counter

before you were opened

before

            I opened you

the juice drained on the floor

you were still whole

Detox

the pain

hot and cold

fire and warm

im here alone-by my choice

you told me nothing

I told you leave

you come to me

I push away

twirling spirals

spinning tops

black and white

a firebed

I know this place

its too familiar

water down

orange and red

anchor my foot

needle through thread

hammer through bone

knife on the table

knife in the home

Empty

I punch through walls and throw up in your car

I date your lover and you’re glad I did

my life enhances yours

you wish I was always there

you wish I was always there

occupying empty space

space which eats at you until your intestines are gone

a tapeworm that never leaves

I am the power that the tapeworms envy

wish they could eat your intestines the way I fill you up

wish they could leave you feeling destroyed and empty

the way I leave you feeling strong

the way I leave you feeling your babies are safe

your life is safe

the world is yours

nobody can take it I have given it to you and my hands are clean and dirty

just like yours

I wash my hands in Nubian rich soap

in lovers’ water

in rose water

in puddles left over nights

in cigarette smoke

I wash my hands in your babies’ bathwater

thank you

thank you god for letting me in

thank you for housing me

thank you for the gift of words

I say thank you because I am blessed

I follow your path and the tapeworms disintegrate into dust

into nothing but dust

which when I touch it

turns to gold.

The Murder of Oscar Grant, RIP: Another Police Brutality Incident

“A peaceful protest turned into a violent one.”

So what?

It’s not the violence that’s not the answer, it’s the disorganization.

“A peaceful protest turned into a violent one.”

Cops with guns, cops backed by tanks, helicopters and bright lights shining above, we may be the people of the sun but those ghetto birds were shining bright florescent lights onto us that night.

How many times will an attack on the people be written off?

The execution shows, as many times as necessary.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day is next Monday but Malcolm said, “By Any Means Necessary.”

The murder of Oscar Grant is an example to get the people to STAY IN LINE!: Kill one as an example, scare them into fear.

“A peaceful protest turned into a violent one.”

Violence begats violence.

I would kill for my dead son, any dead man of my people is the same as my dead son, brother, husband or father.

Rise up and organize into formation loved ones! Youth! Rise up with purpose!

With cause.

Already, disorganized emotions have turned into chaotic actions.

The media has planned with the government to suppress any uprise…we must use stealth, covert actions at first, focused planning, trained soldiers.

They come out with guns, tanks, tear gas…then we must come out with fighting mastery, guns, bombs, uniforms, be ready soldiers.

We are fighting inside war.

Stop getting killed!

Organize!

Focus the energy!

Smashing Black owned shops ain’t bringing Oscar Grant back!

Smash the system! Like trained soldiers during the art of war,

Smash it like you’re looking down the handle of your sword, and the battle is won when the tip meets the eyes of the enemy. Slash!

Rain Haiku

And so, I relax

An upside-down umbrella

in the dripping rain.