Pardon the Interruption

Please pardon the interruption of your regularly scheduled black history month
I know there have been some mixed sentiments about Black History Month being in the shortest month of the year
But we must inform all the detractors that black history month was originally a week in February, so February being the shortest month is kind of irrelevant
However, seeing as though Africa is the root, and technically everything that transpired in the bible alone occurred in Africa or the Middle East, perhaps your pastor should be enlightening the rest of you
Please note that without Chuck Berry and Little Richard, there would have been no Elvis Presley, and rock and roll wouldn’t have been rock and roll without Jimi
Please also note that there is no such thing as urban music
And gangster rap is almost as insulting as the terminology, American Indian, but that’s another poem
But then, so is the fact that we allowed those derogatory terms to define us and our music…again
Wearing dashiki’s during black history month does not make you more culturally aware
As celebrating kwanza does not make you any blacker
I regret to inform you that celebrating president’s day in the middle of black history month is like celebrating Hitler’s birthday during the observation of the Holocaust
If one more teacher tells my nephew that Lincoln freed the slaves…
Pretending that slavery, Jim Crow, the civil rights era, and Reagan didn’t happen to the black community doesn’t mean that they didn’t happen
Sorry to inform you but
The Tuskegee Airmen are a part of history, just like the Tuskegee experiments
Black Wall Street is a part of history, just like the fact that military planes were allowed to bomb it
Martin Luther King, Jr. is a part of history, as is Rodney King
You don’t get the choice to tell the parts you like
The luxury to sugar coat the truth
Don’t patronize me by patting me on my head for 28 days
Telling me I’m special
Then strangle my hopes and dreams for the remainder of the year
Our history is one of struggle and perseverance
Why can’t you tell that?
I need to know all the black history
Tell me how Jesus was crucified
How Hannibal laid waste to Rome
Tell us about the reconstruction era, because I wasn’t taught that in high school
I need more of a reason to believe in myself
I got too much stress
For some reason everyone seems nicer around this time
My boss is riding me more than these 28 days
I was just starting to feel good about myself
I got a mortgage for more than 28 days
I was just beginning to feel self aware and empowered
These utility bills keep coming after these 28 days are up
Twenty eight days ain’t enough
Give me a reason to hold my head high for 365 days a year
Now,
Back to your regularly scheduled program

I wrote this last year around this time...I included it in this February's illpoets.com newsletter, but who knows how many (or few) people actually read it? I wasn't really even penning a poem in this particular instance as much as I was venting thedifferent feelings I have regarding this month.