An Anthem by Sonia Sanchez
An Anthem
Sonia SanchezOur vision is our voice
we cut through the country
where madmen goosestep in tune to Guernica.we are people made of fire
we walk with ceremonial breaths
we have condemned talking mouths.we run without legs
we see without eyes
loud laughter breaks over our heads.give me courage so I can spread
it over my face and mouth.we are secret rivers
with shaking hips and crests
come awake in our thunder
so that our eyes can see behind trees.for the world is split wide open
and you hide your hands behind your backs
for the world is broken into little pieces
and you beg with tin cups for life.are we not more than hunger and music?
are we not more than harlequins and horns?
are we not more than color and drums?
are we not more than anger and dance?give me courage so I can spread it
over my face and mouth.we are the shakers
walking from top to bottom in a day
we are like Shango
involving ourselves in acts
that bring life to the middle
of our stomachswe are coming towards you madmen
shredding your death talk
standing in front with mornings around our waist
we have inherited our prayers from
the rain
our eyes from the children of Soweto.red rain pours over the land
and our fire mixes with the water.give me courage so I can spread
it over my face and mouth.
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SHARED WITH GRATITUDE
This poem appeared in Shake Loose My Skin by Sonia Sanchez, published by Beacon Press, 1999. (Available on: Amazon • Bookshop)
DESCRIPTION
“Covering over thirty years of work, Shake Loose My Skin is a stunning testament to the literary, sensual, and political powers of the award-winning Sonia Sanchez.” (Source)
ABOUT SONIA SANCHEZ
Sonia Sanchez was born in 1934 in Birmingham, Alabama. She earned her BA in political science from Hunter College in 1955, did postgraduate work at New York University, and studied poetry under the mentorship of poet Louise Bogan. Sanchez is the author of more than 20 books, including Homecoming (1969), We a BaddDDD People (1970), Love Poems (1973), I’ve Been a Woman: New and Selected Poems (1978), A Sound Investment (1980), Homegirls and Handgrenades (1984), Under a Soprano Sky… (more)
Read more poems by Sonia Sanchez • Find books by this poet on Amazon • Bookshop • Follow on Twitter • Facebook • Website • Or view my library
ENDNOTES
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