Wednesday, January 30, 2008

b ghetto

b-ing ghetto supposedly means
b-ing battered by the blows of jagged woes
my form left haggard from the staggering height of problems
shattering my view of the sun
you think I’m that one
wrung dry of hope, head hung and lungs filled with
the smoke of ten dollar dope
my voice a constant holler against folk
who don’t live where I live
or die where I die
a holler against folk
who don’t cry like I cry
you think i
suffer through each day
just wishing I could die
to escape my neighborhood full of either
niggaz with trigger happy fingers
or cracked up bitches with lingering twitches
and old stitches tracking their guts
from the lack of birth or body control

well, that ain’t the only way ghetto folk roll

if you ever strolled through the perceived hell
you call my ghetto cell
you’d behold the golden light of young and old
souls shining bright through the oppressive folds
of unknown foes
those folk who overlook our glow and instead
seek to show us only the bleak view of ourselves
as if no hues of beauty could be construed
from the cracked concrete fracturing our streets
as if no joy could be secreted from spirits downbeat
as if each minute of our existence is replete with our defeat

if you ever bothered to step inside
the place I reside
you wouldn’t be so quick to stick
negative signs on our brick
telling us we sick
you wouldn’t be so slow to know
positive grows beneath your nose
and from rich soil we all rose
if you ever bothered to step inside
the place where I reside

but instead you point and snicker at us from the outside

malign our minds cuz they ain’t confined by society’s define
mine our shine then claim it’s yours but only more ‘refined’
assign crimes to our rhymes and not the capitalistic climb
enshrine our dead martyrs while you dine on our decline

then whine cuz our agenda ain’t aligned with your design

but digressing into explaining your transgressions
prevents me from addressing your misconceptions
of the ghetto’s imperfections…

look closer…

we b
bitches and hoes
sistas and bros
chickenheads willing to blow for the snow

look closer…

we b
folk working 80 hour weeks for little dough
children in schools where the quality’s low
parents with little time to watch their kids grow
teens who wear expensive clothes purely for show

look closer…

we b
folk you don’t know cuz you never stop through
folk whom you purposefully misconstrue
folk whose acknowledgement is long overdue
cuz we ain’t just the foundation, we’re the fucking GLUE

look closer…

and recognize

the ghetto in YOU

11 comments:

Mizrepresent said...

Standing up APPLAUDING...that's what i'm talking about...you are the true wordsmith Nikki!

MzPoetiK said...

That was HOT..I like that...flow was very nice...Good Stuff



and SO on point!!!!

Anonymous said...

See that dude standing next to Miz doing just like her? That's me!!!!

Dang! Everytime I think I can't be any more impressed by your writing, you raise the bar.

[SMH]

Barkeep...I'll have another (milk).

CapCity said...

we b
folk you don’t know cuz you never stop through
folk whom you purposefully misconstrue
folk whose acknowledgement is long overdue
cuz we ain’t just the foundation, we’re the fucking GLUE


***Standing F#%ing OVATION****

Anonymous said...

every line got me like WHOA!
and now i know
that even i can be GheTTO!

Sharon shares said...

Born in the projects
and raised in the hood
a girl from the ghetto
never felt so damned good!


Or proud to b ghetto...thanks for painting memories of my childhood with such an honest and vivid color-filled brush; using both broad and fine strokes!

Damn! you're good!

James Tubman said...

the ghetto

hmmm

when people other people ghetto that's a sign saying that they really don't know what a ghetto is

a ghetto is a place where people of the same race, class, religion or whatever is hoarded together because nobody else wants to be around them

most black people livein a ghetto

a suburban ghetto maybe but a ghetto none the less

whenever people say that others are "ghetto" implying that they are lower than you

they are showing their real intelligence level lol

a.Kai said...

Cativating - and painful! so tru, so tru

Blu Jewel said...

Nikki, a thousand ^5s for this amazing piece. Unfortunately there aren't enough words to sing your praises for the depth of this piece. You truly are a blessing to use of words.

Love!

O.A.Eddy said...

Ohhh, this was also very nice

BloggersDelight said...

This was an enlightening piece.