Claude McKay, "The Barrier" (1922)
Your eyes are dawning day;
I must not watch you as you go
Your sun-illumined way;
I hear but I must never heed
The fascinating note,
Which, fluting like a river reed,
Comes from your trembling throat;
I must not see upon your face
Love’s softly glowing spark;
For there’s the barrier of race,
You’re fair and I am dark.
(Edited and Proofread by Alex Thompson)
(From Harlem Shadows, 1922)