Beautiful Black Men by Nikki Giovanni

(With compliments and apologies to all not mentioned by name)

 

i wanta say just gotta say something

bout those beautiful beautiful beautiful outasight

black men

with they afros

walking down the street

is the same ol danger

but a brand new pleasure

sitting on stoops, in bars, going to offices

running numbers, watching for their whores

preaching in churches, driving their hogs

walking their dogs, winking at me

in their fire red, lime green, burnt orange

royal blue tight tight pants that hug

what i like to hug

jerry butler, wilson pickett, the impressions

temptations, mighty mighty sly

don't have to do anything but walk

on stage

and i scream and stamp and shout

see new breed men in breed alls

dashiki suits with shirts that match

the lining that compliments the ties

that smile at the sandals

where dirty toes peek at me

and i scream and stamp and shout

for more beautiful beautiful beautiful

black men with outasight afros

Nikki Giovanni, “Beautiful Black Men” from The Selected Poems of Nikki Giovanni.

Copyright © 1996 by Nikki Giovanni.

Reprinted with the permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.