You Need to be More Than a Black Man? Ballad #1

Power can never be created or destroyed -- it is merely transferred. We decide who has power over our identity. Who are you giving power over you to?

The following is the first poem of a collection of poems, Entitled, “The Ballads of a Black Man in Love with Learning”

The Ballads will be inspired by true events. But more so they will work to capture, in part, what many or some Black Educators have seen, experienced, or heard about. And the ballads will seek to empower, educate, and inspire true love of learning with a focus on cultivating spaces where every person has capacity to learn more of themselves each day and to allow that learning to be led by each person’s true self, their identity -- historically, contemporary, and individually.

*The Ballads are made to go along with a rhythmic percussionist.*

The Ballads will always have the following format:

1. The Ambience (Context)

2. The Affirmation

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“You Need To Be more Than a Black Man” Ballad #1

Ambience:

This Black male teacher was looking for a school that really supported his values as an educator. A positional leader offered their unwarranted advice:

“You need to be more than a Black Man”

The Black male teacher remembered a time where this would have sent him to an identity crisis and self doubt and imposter syndrome.

But, they had him F’d up. better read or understood as… “You got me F’d up”

Affirmation:

I am a Black Man.

I am Strong.

I am Love.

I am Whole.

I am Kind.

I am Rachetdemic.

Equal parts Ratchet and Academic.

I am Black man.

I am Swag.

I am Rhythm.

I am Powerful.

I am more than Enough!