by Harold McMillan

Amongst the entourage of gray gods
Too many patients injected with the sick verbal fa-s-ah-d
As if we built our dreams with sodsought vengeance

Vengeance against those who took our manhood /
                                                                / tomish /
                                                                          against ourselves
that's vengeance baby!

You laughed when I said I was a man
And continued calling me boy
      And so I thank you Emory, Texas
              Rains High
      Gray boys who spit tobacco between classes.

Yes I thank you
      I needed those daily ass whupin's and insults
      I still thrive off those underhanded tones
                  And words unsaid-yet-said-so-loudly.

Thank you East Texas
      You kept me from becoming a
                                          nigger
               Although that had become my (slavename) unnoticed nickname

                                    Or somebody's fucking uncle.

I remember back when I got into a fight at school and my mother didn't even care