Lynnor Latham Graham
This book is most definitely geared toward inner-city living and the life we have come to know, but it is mainly about the truths and the commonalties we all share as a minority. It may be strong (as most truth is), it may be spiritual, and it may be--two words that don't fall together too often--political and true.
Lynnor L. Latham was born in Boston, MA, a street-wise kid who found his way out of the troubled path of the system he almost fell into. And now as a juvenile youth worker, he cares and tries to steer others away from the direction they are heading in. He is trying to reach as many of those whom are willing to listen and comprehend the love and strength we have as black people.
THE CALLING
If I were to tell a story
Where would I begin
The story of all stories
At the end of a pen
This stories on my mind
It concerns those,
Of the Black mankind.
Once upon a time,
A long, long, time ago,
At the time of 1993,
It was twenty years or so ago,
What happened to brothers caring,
I don't know,
There were children, not, unlike myself,
Happy go lucky children, whom took pride in self,
Playing marbles, touch football and all,
We didn't have computer games yet, still the same,
We became adults in the world game,
What happened to the innocence,
What happened to the trust,
What happened to the caring,
The love that we must,
All savour,
That love we must begin again,
The love that must be passed on,
Time and time again,
To keep us from becoming,
Becoming a dead end,
Extinct we do no one any good,
Brothers heed the calling,
The calling in your hood...
EXPLAINING BLACK TO WHITE
To take on the task,
Thinking as I write,
EXPLAINING BLACK TO WHITE,
First of all,
There's the pigment,
Not a figment of the imagination,
This nation,
Judges from without,
Definitely not from within,
But the color of the skin,
So when you tell me,
'We're just like you',
That's thru,
That's dead,
WRONG,
So untrue,
At birth there's strikes,
You're born with one,
We're born with two,
'POOR AND BLACK',
Poor meaning monetarily,
Black (IN THIS COUNTRY) meaning unfortunately,
Two strikes against you,
And the way I see it,
'YOU' meaning white,
Get to earn yours as you go,
You're not born an outcast,
Future's been made in the past,
'That's just the way it is',
You've heard the phrase,
'I EXPERIENCE IT',
'That's just the way it is',
Step on the elevator,
And for some reason,
'You grab your bag a little tighter',
And give me that fake grin,
A purse,
Not a curse,
'That's just the way it is',
'Heads I win',
'Tails you lose',
'A different set of rules',
'And if you don't get it',
'That's not my problem',
'From way back when',
'Grandma's roof was tin',
Like so many promises made,
Fade Fade Fade,
Fade to black,
A sequel to be equal,
(73 pages)
