They came with chains, with iron and lies,
Their greed reflected in hollow eyes.
The ocean roared, the ships stood tall,
Yet sorrow wailed above them all.
Bound in shackles, torn from land,
Sold like cattle, branded by hand.
Through fields of cotton, cane, and stone,
A stolen people wept alone.
In Congo’s veins, the rivers bled,
Leopold’s wrath, the countless dead.
Rubber and gold, a bloody trade,
A fortune built, a people flayed.
In Sharpeville’s streets, the bullets sang,
Apartheid’s law, its iron fang.
The Mau Mau rose with fire and blade,
For stolen lives and debts unpaid.
From Basuto lands, they carved away,
With treaties false, in broad display.
They came for guns, they sought control,
Yet Basotho hearts could not be sold.
The Nile still flows, the baobabs stand,
Despite the blood that stains this land.
Now Africa walks, unbowed, unchained,
Through scars and wounds, her strength remained.
Bahlakoana Mothobi (born 2001) Lesotho
Their greed reflected in hollow eyes.
The ocean roared, the ships stood tall,
Yet sorrow wailed above them all.
Bound in shackles, torn from land,
Sold like cattle, branded by hand.
Through fields of cotton, cane, and stone,
A stolen people wept alone.
In Congo’s veins, the rivers bled,
Leopold’s wrath, the countless dead.
Rubber and gold, a bloody trade,
A fortune built, a people flayed.
In Sharpeville’s streets, the bullets sang,
Apartheid’s law, its iron fang.
The Mau Mau rose with fire and blade,
For stolen lives and debts unpaid.
From Basuto lands, they carved away,
With treaties false, in broad display.
They came for guns, they sought control,
Yet Basotho hearts could not be sold.
The Nile still flows, the baobabs stand,
Despite the blood that stains this land.
Now Africa walks, unbowed, unchained,
Through scars and wounds, her strength remained.
Bahlakoana Mothobi (born 2001) Lesotho
Source: Writers' Space Africa Septemeber 2025 Edition
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please keep your comments relevant and free from abusive language. Thank you. Note that comments are moderated so it may be a day or two before your comment is posted - irrelevant or abusive comments will not be published.