#AmericanWriters
Let America be America again. Let it be the dream it used to be. Let it be the pioneer on the plain Seeking a home where he himself is… (America never was America to me.…
I know I am The Negro Problem Being wined and dined, Answering the usual questions That come to white mind
Night funeral In Harlem: Where did they get Them two fine cars? Insurance man, he did not pay—
The census man, The day he came round, Wanted my name To put it down. I said, Johnson,
Big Boy came Carrying a mermaid On his shoulders And the mermaid Had her tail
I’ve known rivers: I’ve known rivers ancient as the w… My soul has grown deep like the ri… I bathed in the Euphrates when da… I built my hut near the Congo and…
'Me an’ ma baby’s Got two mo’ ways, Two mo’ ways to do de Charleston!… Da, da, Da, da, da!
Gather quickly Out of darkness All the songs you know And throw them at the sun Before they melt
It was a long time ago. I have almost forgotten my dream. But it was there then, In front of me, Bright like a sun—
In an envelope marked: PERSONAL God addressed me a letter. In an envelope marked: PERSONAL
I catch the pattern Of your silence Before you speak I do not need To hear a word.
Have you dug the spill Of Sugar Hill? Cast your gims On this sepia thrill: Brown sugar lassie,
We passed their graves: The dead men there, Winners or losers, Did not care. In the dark
When you turn the corner And you run into yourself Then you know that you have turned All the corners that are left
I, too, sing America. I am the darker brother. They send me to eat in the kitchen When company comes, But I laugh,