by
Gabrielle S.C. Orisanmi
i.
you have spent century after century
watching the spines of midnight bodies
distorted
mangled
by the weight and price of wisdom
the ability to withstand pressure is not strength
perhaps survival
perhaps adaptation
perhaps evolution a genetic imperative to grow through the crevices of a world
that will not make space for you to be
without violence
ii.
you have spent eon after eon
growing hardy off the scraps of the universe
despite hostile conditions for life
eat
grow
until you are a black hole with the density to swallow a galaxy
that could not balance itself without your back
no hymn
no blues
no jazz
will be heard on the day the world collapses into non-matter evanescent smatterings of light and heat
without distinction between self and other
you and Me
Gabrielle S.C. Orisanmi is a poet + multimedia journalist + community educator. She is here to uncover and elevate the stories of black women to advocate and liberate. Gabrielle has been published in For Harriet, Clutch Magazine, The Atlanta Black Star, and A Gathering Together Literary Journal. She has taught media arts and social justice-based community development classes to young people since 2013. An alumna of Temple University, she has presented work on philosophy and Black Women’s Thought at TheNational Council of Black Studies Conference and the Hypatia Conference for Feminist Philosophy.
