Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, JIM CROW, by SAMUEL L. SCHIERLOH


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

JIM CROW, by                    
First Line: They've set a bounty on your head
Last Line: Old jim crow.
Subject(s): Racism; Racial Prejudice; Bigotry


They've set a bounty on your head,
Old Jim Crow;
A quarter is the price, they said,
For dying your black plumage red,
Old Jim Crow.

You come with empty craw each morn,
Old Jim Crow,
And fill it up with Hiram's corn;
And soon you might raid Hiram's barn,
Bad Jim Crow.

You're not a songbird of the State,
Old Jim Crow;
You never serenade your mate;
A raucous cry has been your fate,
Poor Jim Crow.

But ebon plumes and raucous voice
For you was your Creator's choice;
And back, almost, when Time began
Your forbears fed a holy man,
Old Jim Crow.





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