A poignant poem about the exploitation and subjugation of Africa and Africans, by Deeya, exclusively for Different Truths.

I am a 21 year old African
Africa resides in my blood
Ivory hairs bemoan the
riddle of life
We bear the brunt of
your guns the stigma
while you loathed and bathed
in our blood

fair skinned traders
you marvel in our mysteries
dark savannahs grow fierce
with the hunt-the scourge of death
inundate
our jaws , creak and groan
under years of servility

Why, you rule us-
"Mistah  Kurtz- he dead"

broken voices ruffled murmurs
unable to sing Amen!

Bewitching Africa
your colonial upheavals 
our painted bodies, wooden drums
Our voodoo

You trade in death
Lilacs, purple hibiscus
our ancestors the occult practices
Innueumerably bind us to the soil
Our hopes our dreams and survival.

Picture design Anumita Roy, Different Truths

Deeya Bhattacharya

Born in Durgapur, West Bengal, Deeya Bhattacharya has a PG in English Literature and a Graduate in Education from the University of Burdwan. Her poems and articles have appeared in several national and international journals, websites, and e-zines, besides several anthologies. Member of Poets International, she has read her poetry at quite a few fests. She teaches English and Poetry at a State Government High School.