**BLACK ELDERS**
“Without Black Elders, We Are Lost.”
A Black Panther Party (B.C.O.C.) Poem By NEETTA BLACK
I had a Black community,
When I was growing up.
My neighbors knew each other,
And they looked out after us.
Grandfather, he was like a king,
A giant of a man.
Grandmother, she was like a queen,
Just five feet one she stands.
Men worked and they protected and,
They showed us what we need.
To make a strong Black family,
Avoid selfishness and greed.
Though some may work harder than some,
And others have to manage.
They taught us to respect all Blacks,
And never take advantage.
Then demons snatched our elders out,
And we began to fight.
We didn’t know where, they’d taking them,
But we knew it couldn’t be right.
Without our elders we were lost,
And Black children began to stray.
They sold their parent’s property,
And then they moved away.
They didn’t move to Black neighborhoods,
They had to be near whites.
They had to reap the benefits,
Of their new civil rights.
They didn’t care if they paid too much,
As long as they achieved.
The image of “white supremacy”,
Or so some would believe.
Blacks didn’t read their history,
Or they would surely know.
The value of their parent’s land,
And the crops they used to grow.
Our land was like the diamonds,
And our farms were like the gold.
We had when we were Kings and Queens,
Before we lost our souls.
God, once again can enter your home,
If you choose to let him in.
And the devil can only “lynch” you,
If you think that he’s your friend.
A Black Panther Party (B.C.O.C.) Poem By NEETTA BLACK
2-22-2000
