connected by blood and marked differently by hair and villages

they were enticed by our beauty,

we walked the earth with pride

heads held high bodies decorated by tribal stripes that held the meaning behind our lives,

our families, our future.

the secret language of nature was engraved in all of us at birth

creating an ambience of fulfillment and peace

our ability to reign a kingdom of power and grace kept us from falling,

falling into a pit of ignorance

engraved in the door of no return,

our bodies dispersed across the bottom of the ocean leaving behind footprints reflected by God,

we came without questions asked,

we came without a round of applause,

we came alongside thieves,

burglars, robbers, and were forced into the hungry throat of Uncle Sam,

he chewed us. Ate us and spit us out.  

ripped apart from our culture and heritage we stood vulnerable.

they continued to wipe us out until our identity became extinct,

born again.

we exhorted power from the greatness our ancestors gave,

instilling fear in those wanting our downfall,

and reclaiming hope to the village we created,

we continued to rise shaking the ground beneath us.

we overcame

our elders prepared us for what was to come.

we are prepared for what is to come.