You're Dead, America
Filmmaker Jovan Todorovic presents a visceral and enigmatic dramatization of American poet Danez Smith's eponymous lyric on alienation, violence and salvation in the States. The poem, which was published and widely shared on Buzzfeed, and accompanies his heart-wrenchingly powerful book Don't Call Us Dead, explores race relations, social disintegration, and the failure of the American Dream, which receives a dystopian visual take from Todorovic.
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You’re Dead, America
i fed your body to the fish traded it at lunch for milk i know where they buried you cause it’s my mouth they tell me bootstraps & i spit up a little leather they tell me Christ but you don’t have black friends during the anthem i hum Niggas in Paris i cha cha slide over the flag C-walk on occasion i put a spell on you it called for 3/5s of my blood apple pie, red bones & a full moon but instead i did it in the daylight, wanting you to see me ending you stupid stupid me i know better than to fuck with a recipe i don’t make chicken when I don’t have eggs look at what i did: on the TV the man from TV is gonna be president he has no words & hair beyond simile you’re dead, America & where you died grew something worse – crop white as the smile of a man with his country on his side a gun on his other side // tomorrow, i’ll have hope. tomorrow i can shift the wreckage & find a seed. i don’t know what will grow i’ve lost my faith in this garden the bees are dying the water poisons whole cities but my honeyed kin those brown folks who make up the nation of my heart only allegiance i stand for realer than any god for them i bury whatever this country thought it was. “You’re Dead, America,” Poem by Danez Smith. ©2015 Danez Smith. Used by permission. Originally appeared on Buzzfeed. From Don’t Call Us Dead (Graywolf Press, 2017). |
Owning the ShadowThe spiritual practice of shadow encourages us to make peace with those parts of ourselves that we find to be despicable, unworthy, and embarrassing — our anger, jealousy, pride, selfishness, violence, and other "evil deeds." In Christianity, shadow aspects show up as the seven deadly sins. Muslems talk about nafs as our lower selves, and Buddhists refer to negative emanations of mind. Societies and cultures also have dark sides.This practice aims at wholeness by unifying the dark and the light inside and around us. Start by looking closely at yourself, especially your flaws. Take responsibility for your actions, especially those that have had unfortunate outcomes. By owning your shadow, you embrace your full humanity. (Spirituality and Practice) |