Caroling Dusk/The New Negro

by James Edward McCall

THE NEW NEGRO

He scans the world with calm and fearless eyes, Conscious within of powers long since forgot;At every step, new man-made barriers rise  To bar his progress—but he heeds them not.He stands erect, though tempests round him crash, Though thunder bursts and billows surge and roll;He laughs and forges on, while lightnings flash Along the rocky pathway to his goal.Impassive as a Sphinx, he stares ahead— Foresees new empires rise and old ones fall;While caste-mad nations lust for blood to shed, He sees God’s finger writing on the wall.With soul awakened, wise and strong he stands,Holding his destiny within his hands.