African American Poetry (1870-1928): A Digital AnthologyMain MenuFull Text Collection: Books Published by African American Poets, 1870-1927Author Pages: Bios and Full Text CollectionsAreas of Interest: Topics and ThemesThe Beginnings of the Harlem Renaissance: Overview and Timeline of Key EventsBlack Poetry Before the Harlem Renaissance: Overview and TimelinePeriodicals: African American Poetry Published in MagazinesAfrican American Poetry: Anthologies of the 1920sExploring Datasets related to African American poetryAbout This Site: Mission Statement, Contributors, and Recent UpdatesFurther Reading / Works CitedAmardeep Singhc185e79df2fca428277052b90841c4aba30044e1
Countee Cullen Black Majesty With Illustration Opportunity Magazine May 1928
1media/Countee Cullen Black Majesty With Illustration Opportunity May 1928_thumb.png2024-03-07T10:28:03-05:00Amardeep Singhc185e79df2fca428277052b90841c4aba30044e12131Countee Cullen Black Majesty With Illustration Opportunity Magazine May 1928plain2024-03-07T10:28:03-05:00Amardeep Singhc185e79df2fca428277052b90841c4aba30044e1
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12024-03-07T10:31:45-05:00Countee Cullen, "Black Majesty" (1928)1plain2024-03-07T10:31:45-05:00 These men were kings albeit they were black: Toussaint and Dessalines and L'Ouverture; Their majesty has made me turn my back Upon a plaint I once shaped to endure. These men were black, I say, but they were crowned And purple-clad, however brief their time. Stifle your agony, let grief be drowned; We know joy had a day once and a clime. Dark gutter snipe, black sprawler-in-the-mud, A thing men did a man may do again; What answer filters through your sluggish blood To these dark ghosts who knew so bright a reign? "Lo, I am dark, but comely," Sheba sings; "And we were black," three shades reply, "but kings."
