… And Madiba Wept (a Poetry Against Xenophobia)

No amount of sweet words can quench
The fury and rage that has consumed your souls
No peace talks and promise savoured in myrrh
Can restore your emotions gone astray

For deep down within, in the place where beings are formed
The stiletto of hatred has struck an ill-starred chord
And an obscene eulogy of deaths is heralded on your streets
Cold blood, cold face, cold hearts!

But wait…!

The cries of your warm hearts are tenable
But your ways are near irreparable
Like it rained fishes in Thailand, you wished same for Durban
You are hungry, naked and homeless
In the country of your birth, in the land you fought to keep

I hear your wailings thundered the earth with tremor
Your unspoken gait shakes the human in me
I feel your pain because I was there
I took the bullet for that freedom
The same freedom you trample on your streets

Remember the struggles that freed your limbs
The clamour that rented your soul
And the love that restored your pride
From your kindreds, near and afar; Black and Timbuktu
As they chanted: 'Apartheid is a crime against humanity'

And why...?

Why have you allowed, the bond that binds to bleed
Why have you allowed, the brotherliness that builds to bother
Why have you allowed, the chord that cares to cry
Why have you allowed, yourself a pant after blood

So stop…!

Cease the blood, stop the spill
At the set of the beautiful African sun
Talk to your brothers, the sons of your mother
Call your elders, dialogue under the Baobab
A peaceful and prosperous co-existence is never a myth
The strength of the broom lies in the unity of its strands

And remember…!

The brother you disown today, was your hero at war yesterday
The brother you crush today, is the pillar for the wall of tomorrow
You travel a mile when you go alone
But your go farthest when you go TOGETHER…

Together...as citizens, sons and daughters of a father and a mother
So united our boundaries disappear with alacrity
In the face of love that binds like the umbilical
The same chord that make Africa a Mama

From whose breast the world craves nourishment
And that is the Africa I fought and lived for…
That is the South Africa I bequeathed to you…
Yet, you make my heart ache because the possibilities
Of a united Africa, your little mind is yet to comprehend

(C) Kojo Williams 2015
Reach him via: [email protected]

Author: Kojo Williams (citizen Kb Williams)

COMMENTS (1)

GBANAGLO CHRISTIAN | 5/6/2016 7:21:22 PM

RAIN RAIN GO AWAY GO AND COME ANOTHER DAY LITTLE CHILDREN WANT TO PLAY RAIN RAIN GO AWAY

Add Comment

Remember to keep comments respectful and to follow our

What are the rules for commenting?

We've established these House Rules for your safety and to keep the ModernGhana website a healthy environment for discussion.

We love you posting comments. But please don’t do anything horrible, rude or illegal.

More specifically, please don’t post anything that:

Is inappropriate (abusive, offensive or disruptive)
Is off-topic (to the original content or the current conversation)
Contains personal information (either your own or someone else’s)
Puts children at risk
Is illegal, or glamourises illegal activity
Is defamatory (damaging to someone else’s reputation)
Is in contempt of court (anything that could affect the outcome of a court case)
Infringes anyone’s rights (including privacy rights)
Was made by someone else, or that copies someone else’s creation
Is posted for your financial gain (advertising, sponsorship etc.)
Isn’t in English (unless we’ve asked you to comment in another language)
Contains spam (unless you’re commenting on a story about reconstituted meat)
Contains links to content that can’t be seen easily, or may be unsafe (viruses, spyware, paywalls etc.)
Or doesn’t comply with the rest of our Terms of Use.

Breach of the terms of use will result in the removal of your comments. Repeated breaches will result in the restriction of your IP-Address.