The white man is a tiger at my throat, Drinking my blood as my life ebbs away, And muttering that his terrible striped coat Is Freedom's and portends the Light of Day. Oh white man, you may suck up all my blood And throw my carcass into potter's field, But never will I say with you that mud Is bread for Negroes! Never will I yield. Europe and Asia wait The touted New Deal of the New World's hand! New systems will be built on race and hate, The Eagle and the Dollar will command. Oh Lord! My body, and my heart too, break -- The tiger in his strength his thirst must slake! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...ARMAGEDDON by GEORGIA DOUGLAS JOHNSON FINALITY by GEORGIA DOUGLAS JOHNSON A FLORIDA GHOST by SIDNEY LANIER A SONG OF ETERNITY IN TIME by SIDNEY LANIER IN A SWEDISH GRAVEYARD by EMMA LAZARUS LINES ON CARMEN SYLVA by EMMA LAZARUS EPITAPH IN A CHURCH-YARD IN CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA by AMY LOWELL |