Life in Fatherless Times

Life in Fatherless Times

First of all,

There are no Fathers where I
  Live. No Husbands. No Heroes.
No Heads of Households. No

Patriarchs. No Protectors. No
  Providers. Oh sure, there are
Plenty of boyfriends, babies’

Daddies and bedfellows
  Here. But no Fathers.
According to news reports

And ancient scrolls of Ebony
  Magazine, black men were once
Known to frequent churches,

Grocery stores, school halls
  And jobs. But in my neck
Of the woods men frequent

Clubs, liquor stores, pool
  Halls and jails. They say
Black men were once known

For lending their support.
  Around here they’re well
Known for not paying any.

When adversity arises, when
  Crisis mounts, when tragedy
Strikes, they say Fathers

Will be right there—protecting,
  Providing...

The Hood: No Place Like Home

If I may, allow me to show you a place

where children never hear footsteps of father
where homes lack brick of love and mortar of hope
where families bury sons like farmers bury seeds
where young men have heart of lion but carry hunter’s fire

where death certificates come before diplomas
where pregnancy comes before the prom
where prison is our passage to manhood
where welfare is our declaration of dependence

where gangsta rappers get the glory of gods
where athletes earn the awe of angels
where gold teeth and tattoos are proof of power
where success is defined by 20-inch rims

where every beat boasts booty / bullets and bloodshed
where the Grammy goes to a song about a pimp’s hardships
where ignorance is exploited by a man named Maury
where stupidity grants access to a thing called Fame

where purity is a disease no girl wants to catch<...