Call Them By Their Real Names

By Rashawn Wheeler

Black boys from Mississippi We were young Call them beautiful Call them by their real names Call them New York call us country We were fast, we were strong They talked with their hands We listened with our chests Their handslifted and balled up for speed We were Mississippi black boys All of us were them, by the end New York black boys and Mississippi black boysare fast at heart brave because we are young Black and white are strong, a 200-pound weight 200 problems and painThey’re heavy... New York black boys and Mississippi black boys Listen to our feelings Talk with a lisp Starting with any word with the letter S Sour, sweet, small, smart Black or white, we are strong We can carry an ax and do work... No different from the rest

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