Becoming American Becoming Ethnic

Two Poems

Rose Rameau (SUNY Binghamton 1994) Two Poems Translated by Carrol Coates REFLEXION HaIti! HaIti! HaIti, rose noire. Ne vois-tu pas qu'ils ont trahi? Belle negresse, Ils ont arrache tes dernieres feuilles vertes .... De toi ils se sont moques, Ils t'ont accusee ... de tout.... Femme vaillante, Ils ont meme oublie Que tu es la perle des Antilles. Hayti, £leur printaniere, Conserveras-tu ton nom... ? Pourquoi t'es-tu endormie? Reveille-toi! Va sauver tes enfants qui meurent de faim! Leurs parents sont maltraites, Isoles, exiles, eparpilles partout. Hayti, pays noir Premier aprendre ta liberte. Oh, que j'attends de toi quelques feuilles. Oui, quelques feuilles vertes de ton jardin. 225 Two Poems REFLECTION Haiti! Haiti! Haiti, black rose. Don't you see that they have betrayed you? Beautiful black woman, They wrenched away your last green leaves.. They mocked you, Accused you ... ofeverything.... Courageous woman, They even forgot That you are the Pearl of the Antilles. Haiti, spring flower, Can you keep your name... ? Why did you fall asleep? Wake up! Run to save your starving children! Their parents are mistreated, Isolated, exiled, scattered across the globe. Haiti, black country, the first to seize your freedom! Oh, how I long for your green leaves. Yes, a few green leaves from your garden. 226 Rose Rameau BAJa ESTE CIELO Bajo este cielo que no parece duro, Donde reina la angustia, el dolor... el castigo Todavla nadie ha encontrado una cura. El suefio de Martin Luther King. La lucha de Malcom X, ~A donde llegaremos? jAy! .. me siento triste de ver y olr gritos de mis hermanos Por la libertad... SI, la libertad de ser negro, La libertad de vivir como humano Ese orgullo que vive al fondo de nuestro corazon, Nos empuja a dispararnos. Lucrecia, una de las victimas, Tan joven, tan inocente para entrar en los cielos. Hermana caribefia, hermana de corazon. Ojala que tu Dios te ayude. jAy! Lucrecia, hermana de mi tierra... si hay un Dios en los cielos, El infierno esta sobre la tierra. ~Pagaran ellos por sus pecados? 227 Two Poems BENEATH THIS SKY Beneath this sky, which does not look hard, Where anxiety, pain and punishment hold sway. Nobody has yet found a cure. The dream ofMartin Luther King. The struggle ofMalcolm X, Where are we going? Ay! I feel sad when I see And hear the shouts of my brothers Claiming freedom ... Yes, the freedom to be black, The freedom to live as humans, that pride dwelling In the depths ofour heart Makes us explode. Lucrecia, one ofthe victims, Sb young and innocent to be sent to heaven. Caribbean sister, sister ofmy heart. May God succor you. Ay! Lucrecia, sister from my land, If there is a God in heaven, Hell is above the earth. Will they pay for their sins? ...