Keeping the Legacy

Brother Author Goodman gives his views on love. He is truly a poet for generations to come. See below:

Slayton, let me know if you want to join this year's institute. Week 2 begins on Tuesday. Kendale Johnson from Kenwood is one of this year's brother authors. You can visit this year's blog at www.aaamsli2.blogspot.com

Keep writing, young brother, keep writing.

The best kind of LOVE
By Slayton Goodman
07-03-09
This girl had a nice attitude and beautiful curves
I mean this girl could make the word beautiful a verb
They say every kiss begins with “k”, but so does every kill
Because love is a dangerous thing that will have you feeling so ill
It’ll have you feeling so sick’ wish you can be done with it
Wish you never made her cry and then just quit
But NO it’s like a drug because you can never get enough
And I’m so sick and tired of all the bull stuff
And the type I hate most is teenage love
Because the type I fear most is teenage love
But they say fear hurts but I feel no pain
And they say no pain no gain so I am staying the same
Because I can never decrease but I will never win
Never give my heart and soul to any of these women
And I learned a valuable lesson, always put myself first
Because when I give my all in a relationship I get hurt
I call this the best kind of love because it gets better before it gets way worse
And that’s the end of this verse, end of this curse
Because in the end love is just a word
-take a bow, exit left stage, I’m done playing this role

Critical Consciousness from a YBA

Social Slavery and Dirty Politics
By Slayton Goodman –Feb. 08 09

They gave us the sour lemon and we made lemonade
Soul food the food from the soul of a slave
They gave us what they didn’t want and we reversed it
And after all this time now we prefer it
Tell J.F.K. what he did was not in vain
I won’t stop spreading knowledge until blood freezes in my vein
Evil politicians have raped our brains
Laws do disappearing acts like David Blaine
But when I show up in court they stay the same
Innocent until proven guilty doesn’t that sound insane
I think America is great because of diversity
I think America is hate because of lies and thieves
And I support Blagojevich
Ask the politicians can they stomach this
A terrorist gun held to the victims head ready to pull the trigger
He is also a black man therefore he is also a………figure
Of common discourtesy therefore he is also a………bigger
Threat to society along with the other ignor-
ant people that can’t see
That anything is questionable politically thinking
When you look at a porcupine all you see is the needles
Look at my skin tone and my attire and all you see is the evil

Poetry from the Youngest Brother Author from the Institute - Returning after 7 Months - Welcome Back YBA

Shattered Glass
by
Deonte Jones

Sometimes when dreams are broken, they are nothing
more than shattered glass. When your heart is broken,
you feel like shattered glass. When you get jumped,
your bones feel like shattered glass. This might not
sound all that bad, but think of how the glass feels.

Darkness
by
Deonte Jones

A lot of life is spent in darkness.
Some people may not notice.
Night is full of darkness.
It might be morning, but most of the world
is still dark!!!


The Never Ending Hallway
by
Deonte Jones

Life is like a hallway. It feels like it
never ends. But when you cut that hallway
in half, you see it’s very short, which is just
like life. So live your life like there’s no
tomorrow because tomorrow’s not promised.

My Inauguration

My Inauguration

by

Alfred W. Tatum

I never felt so low being locked down
I say Barack on stage
Before being forced back into the cage
D.C. felt so close, but out of my reach

I started reflecting on all I had done
to please the girl who no longer remembers my name
as she now teaches her son about OBAMA
the real man who stands next to a real momma


My mattress swallowed me as I sat on the cot
My soul began to rot
As I tried to disappear because of the shame inside
My calls felt so idle – no more throwing up the Ws for West Side

Then I remembered someone talking about God’s loving grace
Maybe it can sustain me until I get out of this place
44 months to go, isn't that ironic, before my release
Into a different society with a Black Man calling for world peace

I can’t wait until the daylight
So that I say good morning to the next Brother
Who I suspect felt the same shame
Barack has given me a new face
It’s up to me to restore my name

Barack has give me a new face
It’s up to me to restore my name

No more iniggeration
My inauguration starts today
This, to God, I pray.

Yet Another Brother Author Has Returned

Untitled

By: John Galloway


I Never Had the Best Choice Of Buddies Or MANY Friends
Some May Call Me A Crybaby But In The End It All Depends.
Daddy Never Gave A Damn,
But I Would Always Kill For My Child To Have Another Meal.
Still Worried About WHERE I Will Go Wrong
and Will They Put “JUST ANOTHER N***A” Over my Tombstone.
A Whole Bunch of Sad Songs and Flower Bringing,
with a funeral full of little cousins I Never Be seeing.
Trying in School to Be the Best
Praying to God for A cure For M.S.
I Guess It Fells Good To Get Some Of This Off My Chest
But My Soul Must Consume The Rest.
Scared of the Fact That I may not Graduate
But The suit and Gown Is Something I Will Always Anticipate.
So Much Spitting On me I feel Like another Dog
but it will Feel Good to Be the Underdog.
The Flows So Hot I’m Afraid to Touch It,
Been holding it so long I get Blisters from it!
We still live In a Recession;
the country isn’t making no progression.
I’m Still Black,
N ***AS Still sell Crack,
Most Pitiful N***AS Still
Looking for a purse to snatch
or kill a mother over One
Now what’s The Gansta in That?
Still Older People Trying to Lecture us
But When Girls Get pregnant all They Blame is us.
Police go over board to restrain us
because the N***A in us don’t Want People Putting Chains On us.
So When I die I Want to go to Heaven
because now isn’t A Gift
So Why Do We Call It the Present.