MERRY CHRISTMAS
by Langston Hughes
Published In New Masses (Dec. 1930)
Merry Christmas, China
From the gun-boats in the river,
Ten-inch shells for Christmas gifts,
And peace on earth forever.
Merry Christmas, India,
To Gandhi in his cell,
From righteous Christian England,
Ring out, bright Christmas bell!
Ring Merry Christmas, Africa,
From Cairo to the Cape!
Ring Hallehuiah! Praise the Lord!
(For murder and rape.)
Ring Merry Christmas, Haiti!
(And drown the voodoo drums –
We'll rob you to the Christian hymns
Until the next Christ comes.)
Ring Merry Christmas, Cuba!
(While Yankee domination
Keeps a nice fat president
In a little half-starved nation.)
And to you down-and-outers,
("Due to economic laws")
Oh, eat, drink, and be merry
With a bread-line Santa Claus –
While all the world hails Christmas,
While all the church bells sway!
While, better still, the Christian guns
Proclaim this joyous day!
While holy steel that makes us strong
Spits forth a mighty Yuletide song:
SHOOT Merry Christmas everywhere!
Let Merry Christmas GAS the air!
Funny how, in almost 80 years - those who are conscious and critically thinking - are talking about the same kind of things.
22 comments:
That Langston! He sure said ugly truth pretty.
Merry Christmas, Little Sistuh.
(You have mail)
Yeah he did.
Merry Christmas to you too Sister!
(Got it)
I posted a comment yesterday, but it seems to have disappeared.
It was a bit negative compared to what you ladies posted, so I'll stick with good wishes for the new year this time.
Feliz año nuevo.
ea...I didn't see the comment (I stopped the moderating - too much trouble and I'm lazy). But do repost it. ¡Sabes que no hay censura para usted aquí! :-)
Let her rip, Hermana, how you feel - is how you feel.
Feliz año nuevo, Mujer. I'm just happy to hear from you.
Gracias por la invitación. Unfortunately, I lost the thread of the post--it was a spontaneously response to reading the poem and commented on the cultural and military exports of the United States of America (basically how we crap all over the rest of the world and expect it to feel honored).
That would have been interesting! :-)
Deb...I have been trying to catch up with your blogs. You are sooooo talented. Your writing is a little above my head sometimes, but I am so proud to have you as my sister in law. You have so much principle and class. I am going to try to catch up and keep up. I hope you keep up with it. I am learning so much.
Love you little sis and I will be talking with you soon. Happy New Year to you and the fam.
Joyce....aka Big Sis to you.
Thanks Joy, just being me.
Writing helps me process shit - and, keeps me sane (most of the time). That there's something enlightening for someone else, is an extra benny!
Love you too and Happy New Year to you and the fam as well.
Talk to you soon.
Happy New Year, Deb!!!
May this year see you get your sexy groove all the way back!
Among any and all other things you could ever possibly wish for.
For you, maybe not "best," but "good" for damned sure:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbW2UHR11_s
Happy New Year, my Sister! Thank you so much for always being there! I really, really mean that.
Pulled the elliptical out of the garage to work on gettin' my sexy groove all the way back! :-) When I do - look out!!!
I'm not wishing for much Cin. I'm just glad I'm not hittin' wood when I wake up and stretch every mornin'!
Keep being you, Cin - we ALL need that!
"Good for damned sure," Cin! (think my laptop's dying - the video kept starting and stopping!)
Helloooo, time to get back in gear. Us lurkers are running out of patience. There could be a Bastille in your future (but Madame Dafarge won't be there. She was a knitter, but she was gleeful, not bitter).
Mind you, Gary stopped before thanksgiving, and just came back. Hmmm, that gives you another 6 weeks before the pitchforks come out.
Seriously, I've lurked here for quite awhile, and I miss your very unique voice. I do hope you will return soon. I understand adversity (you have no idea), and I understand how it debilitates one. One has to take time to get their breath - with me it took years, and how I regret that. Time to go back to being YOU, and what a special YOU that is. Please, don't leave us. Lurking isn't as much fun without you.
Damn it all, you and Red are such stubborn folks. I'm selfish. Post please. Although I'll understand if you hang it up forever. It's hard, and you have my admiration for what you've done.
Damn, you made me delurk. You're as bad as Cinie and Gary.
HT...Hey! YOU delurked! Now you KNOW I'm gonna have to finish this post - tonight! :-)
"You're as bad as Cinie and Gary."
I'm definitely in good company!
Thanks for stopping in HT (just left you another comment over at Cin's)!
Hi Deb!
Having spent half an hour getting access to your blog and another ten minutes getting here, I won't leave without leaving (heh!) a comment.
As I hope you know – oh, you must know! – I've always enjoyed your comments and "talking" to you at Cinie's place and have really wanted to follow your blog, even though I, just like Anon, find your writing to be "a little above my head", but I too still learn so much from you.
But for some unknown (to me) reasons, yours is one of the blogs that it takes me (my computer) for ever to download, which is why I've never commented. Not for lack of wanting to, though! So when for once I've made it here, let me repeat my good wishes for you and all of yours in a
Very Happy New Year
here at your home turf!
And the poem is beautiful – however chilling too! Must go google Langston!
Sending lots of love your way Deb (aka "I'm Deb! See?" ;) ), but probably won't be back, unless I solve the problem with the slooowww download. (And don't you worry about replying, as I won't see it.)
Love Pips!
Hi There I'd love to congratulate you for such a great made site!
Just thought this is a nice way to make my first post!
Sincerely,
Monte Phil
if you're ever bored check out my site!
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Hi, Happy New Year!
Sorry if this is double or triple posted, but my computer keeps crashing every time I try to leave a comment.
Just wanted to say I'm catching up with your blog and your excellent writing, and also thanks for your fantastic contributions at my place.
Would it be ok for me to link you from my blogroll?
All the best,
TBL.
Pips...Hey! I most certainly will reply! Great to see you! You're the second person not in the US having a problem getting this thing to load! Since I'm far from being a computer wonk, think I'll ask Blogger Help if it's something on my end or not - because I sure hate missing out on conversations with you! If I get a useful reply, I'll let you know!
"I, just like Anon, find your writing to be "a little above my head", but I too still learn so much from you."
And I'll tell you the same thing I told her - the writing helps me process shit and sometimes stay sane. The fact that there's something interesting or helpful to someone else is a cherry on top! It's just what I'm thinkin' Pips - and I hope you know, if there's anything you need me to make clearer, we can kick it around until it is (that helps me process shit as well)!
I'm glad there's something useful I can share, Pips - but that's a two-way street, given what I've learned from you about happenings over there that I'd probably NEVER learn enough about (in any meaningful way anyway)! We both know the MSM can only be trusted as far as they can be thrown - en masse! ;-)
Thanks for "coming over" and wishing me Happy New Year here (especially after all it took to get here!). I appreciate that.
Yes, do Google Langston! He was required reading in my predominantly-Black high school - as he should be now, along with many other great Black writers, poets, etc. But even today - in our post-racial nation, I don't see many of the Old Guard's words shared, explained and revered as is the work of so many white writers. How're we gonna be post-racial without that??
Lots of love right backatcha Pips! Happy belated and I'll see you over at Cin's I know!
Monte Phil...Welcome and thank you. Glad you like it. One word of warning - don't spam me with ads. I'm old, unemployed, and not buying shit online - or otherwise.
But, if you've got some interesting conversations going on over there, I'll surely visit! :-)
TBL...Hi and welcome! My friend Pips is having the same problem! I'm going to check with Blogger Help to see if it's something I need to do.
Thanks TBL, I appreciate you dropping in! Link away! I saved you to my favorites, but I was going to ask you the same thing! I hope to learn a lot from you young, critically thinking, ladies at your place. And trust me, if I can offer a useful 2 cents, I will!
Hi Deb, just checking in. I wanted to say how much I loved your post on 'What's the difference...' but I didn't want to show up in the comments there, as I didn't want to interrupt your great conversation with Cinie just to give you fan mail! So I put your fan mail here instead! Hope you're well. So far it seems your comments box hasn't crashed my computer! lol ;)
Hey TBL! Thanx for the fan mail! I was pretty full and needed to unload - I feel a little better now that I got some shit off my chest! :-)
It was a great conversation wasn't it? I count on Cin to always be honest with me and she always is. I'm going to ask her if she minds if I post the conversation because she laid out some really important shit that I think plenty of people should hear and understand.
Don't worry about "interrupting" though - there's plenty conversation to go around! Glad your computer survived the visit. :-) Take care.
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