Yes We Can by Marie Williams

The winner of the National Black History Month Poetry Competition in the Adults Category –category was ‘Yes We Can by Marie Williams

Black women you span the world

You span the universe, You span the continents

You span the villages, You span your homeland

And across these span, All your achievements

Worthy to be praised

 

As black women challenges

Have often befriended you

Wrapped in othering by society

Taught to be illiterate, Expected to tantalize

The groins and hearts of men

Your black beauty unseen

 

And when all this became unbearable

You broke the shackles of bondage

You broke the years of heartache and disdain

You began to rise

Gifted and blessed

You walked through a series of doors

Conquering political racial and social justice

No longer a mere home maker

But a trailblazer in business innovation entrepreneurship

You a raconteur, An author, A poetry performer

You a publisher, Defying the status quo

Made you creative and confident

 

Imagine the misogynist, Sitting on their verandas

Questioning who authorised you,

To become experts in Stem –

Science technology engineering mathematics

How absurd!

For you all there is no looking back

As you turn up the volume

Dancing to a yes we can tune

Redressing the imbalance

Empowering future generations

To aspire achieve and soar

As they prepare to walk in your footsteps