Margaret Walker(1915–1998)
Since 1619
H o w many years since 1 6 1 9 have I been singing Spirituals
H o w long have I been praising God and shouting hallelujahs
H o w long have I been hated and hating
H o w long have I been living in hell for heaven
W h e n will I see my brother's face wearing another color
W h e n will I be ready to die in a honest fight
W h e n will I be conscious of the struggle—now to do or die
W h e n will these scales fall away from my eyes2
W h a t will I say w h e n days of wrath3 descend:
When the money-gods take all my life away;
W h e n the death knell sounds
And p e a c e is a flag of far-flung blood and filth
W h e n will I understand the cheated and the cheaters;
Their paltry pittances and cold c o n c e s s i o n s to my pride
W h e n will I burst from my kennel an angry mongrel,
Lean and hungry and tired of my dry bones and years