This poem is part of a special presentation of The Poetry of Señoritas Latinas Unidas Sorority, Inc. If you are interested in seeing the entire collection of poetry submitted by this organization, click here.
Mis
Raices
By:
Jaletza Arias
I pull and pull
Dug deep inside to accept it…
Flaws they bring to light
Looking in the mirror continuing to
face defeat
And remember my past
Fighting myself, wishing to conform
To be accepted because I –
Cannot look in the mirror anymore
THESE ROOTS!
Of a past that mature into a future
tense
As much as I try to pull…ignore…straighten…
Cut them loose…
Ancestors past haunt me…
Remembering the pain and struggle
Men, women, and children betrayed
Forced labor…
Rape…
Disease ridden lands
Indios
Dying
Dying
Dying
Dead
Africans arrive to supplement their
time
Chained to cut sugar cane
For teas we drink today
Genes passed on
Etched on skin
En cada rostro que cambia….
Una nueva herencia
OUR SLAVERY!
To be different
Have silky smooth skin
In Light shades
With Pin. Straight. Hair.
MY ROOTS
Bad Tight curls
Nose
Lips
Hips
Good Light skin
¡ADELANTAR LA RAZA!
We are not marching for a revolution
Accept our past and change our present
Accept who we are once and for all
Mixing our pasts
Planting new seeds of life
Trying to forget where we came from
¡VIVIR LA REVOLUCION!
For we must break FREE!
Allow the past to nurture the future
Generation to generation to generation
I am now free
Choosing to embrace these roots –
From the depths of my soul
Carry my ancestor's goals
Heavy on my heart
Ready to wade thru the sea of all those
against me
Against YOU
Against us
Ready to continue the battle they once
lost
Wage the war they could not fight
No longer purifying the blood that
coarse through my veins
Fighting these demons
As they pray that I too shall be in
chains
Carrying me away for fighting the war
and living the revolution
