Daughters of Yam, Opal Palmer Adisa and devorah major, have been performing as a dynamic duo since 1984. In a harmonic blending of voices, they lift poetry off the page yet preserve the integrity of language. They infuse the words and resonance with the values of performance by adding music and drama. They continue in the tradition of the African Griot (storyteller and historian) who gave birth to the Last Poets, Jayne Cortez and Sonia Sanchez, et al.

Daughters of Yam performs poetry, which is cultural, social and political centering on the reality of being of African descent, women, mothers, lovers, human beings in today's world. Their poetry looks beyond the problems to defining possible solutions and sniffing out the joy and hope.

CLEARING


every wave begins
as a drop of water

every wave begins
as a drop of water

is this the idea of thirst
born in the need
first nurtured in the blood
of our mothers

every drop of water
carries life

every drop of water
carries life

the birds tucked their wings
headed for the hills
the rats and all the rodents
picked up their bellies
and scampered to rocks
that no water would dare climb
the lizards and insects
textured other trails
desert and lonely

they knew
the smell of danger
was not banished from
their memories
the hunger for life
was not distilled
by knowledge
they knew

i was everywhere
when tsunami struck
you were there too
we were all everywhere
where we were bombing
and didn’t object
where were we dumping nuclear waste
and said it had nothing to do with us
where were we felling trees
and said that’s someone else’s problem
where were we polluting oceans
and said we’re taking a cruise vacation

i was everywhere
when tsunami struck
you were there too
we were all everywhere
not just with the handful
of north americans who died
not just with the celebrity
who lost a leg
not just with the officials
who must decide how to face
the nation
we were there
each of us contributing
a drop of water
watching for the big wave
riding it when it came
our nostrils clogged
with its vapor
we were there
even before
it rose up like the monsters
we create to scare
we were there
even as those who lived there
were digging in the earth’s bowel
for food
we were there
indifferent
thinking that what happens
in iraq----------the caribbean
africa and the rest of asia
is not connected to
everything we do
every time we do it

and the need is no greater
today
than it was yesterday
nor than it will be tomorrow
when we become too overwhelmed
with our own lives
when another disaster captures our eyes
awaken again modicum generosity
the need is no greater
except for the calamities here at home
the people on the street
with no homes
no food
no medical care
the unpunished presidential coup
for the second time
children in marginal social schools
not being taught
prisons must be filled
slave labor needed more than ever
let do a we are the world
every week
every month
every year
until all the needs are obsolete

every wave begins
as a drop of water
every drop of water
is a wave

every wave begins
as a drop of water
every drop of water
is a wave

a wave of indifference
a wave of separation
a wave of hunger
a wave of loneliness
a wave of greed
a wave of corruption
a wave

every wave is
a drop of your thought
your thought
sent to the universe
every tsunami
begins in me
begin in you
every wave is
a drop of your thought


Opal Palmer Adisa

corrosive acid

A staggering number of people in the United States are subjected to racial profiling. Approximately 32 million people, a number approximately equivalent to the population of Canada, report they have already been victims of racial profiling. AIUSA report Threat and Humiliation: Racial Profiling, National Security, and Human Rights in the United States


one out of every nine americans
has been given a profile
has been slated as not
to be trusted on sight
has been identified as deserving of
arbitrary stops and searches
numbered as less than desirable

are you
one of
us

do you
wear the mask of middle eastern
the tongue of allah
the skin of africa
the flesh of latin america
the eyes of south east asia
the hair of indian
the taint of other

are you
one of
us

who when found engaged
in an ordinary activity

sitting at home
or walking down the street
shopping in the mall
or driving to work or play

or driving just to drive and think

preparing to fly
or going to or coming
from a place of worship

has been
stopped and questioned
examined and searched
sometimes detained
sometimes arrested
sometimes tortured
often abhorred
rarely ignored

you know who
we are
neighbors
coworkers
family
friends
self

see how
our numbers
grow

at this pace soon
it will be one
of every three
americans
stopped
searched
hounded
harangued
harassed
investigated
incarcerated

87 million left to go
and counting


devorah major
3/05