Published May 15th, 2025
Africa Poetry Contest #4 – First Place
by Justice Joseph Prah
You told me,
I am you, made to look like us.
I am the cradle of birth for all races–
A race of worth that learns its worthlessness
Through the eyes of those who unearthed me in the age of discovery.
You told me at Timbuktu,
I am the ancient lost city of Kalahari,
The market for all unfair trade in the eyes of China,
Wangara trade marks, leading to Nubian mines.
But why do I kneel before these servants,
Servants with an epileptic greed?
They came to me in Sudan with their sermons of war,
But I rejected their war.
Still, they brought it to me for a price.
I rejected their depression–
They offered it to me as a cure and took my impressions.
I rejected their poverty–
They cunningly bestowed it upon me,
A blessing nailed to a cross of Golgotha.
But today, the sun rose twice,
And I saw, in the heart of all my troubles,
The darkness of lies dissolve
Into the dewy truth of humility.
Seventy decades ago, they told my story–
The caravan trails of Mansa Musa,
Headed north with wealth beyond measure.
In those tales, I saw my worth,
Splashed across once-dirty patches of nations,
Now polished clean by the gleam of my gold.
Tell me,
What is my worth,
You, the creators of my burdens?
About the Poet
Justice Joseph Prah resides in Accra, Greater Accra, Ghana.
Read the poet's biography on Justice Joseph Prah's Artist Page.
This poem is also featured in Wax Poetry and Art Magazine #7,
published in the Wax Poetry and Art Library.
Previously published in Africa Poetry Magazine:
Childhood Africa
by Joseph C. Ogbonna
Africa Poetry Magazine is part of the Wax Poetry and Art Network.
- Visit the main Wax Poetry and Art Submissions Page to see all opportunities.
- Visit the Wax Poetry and Art Library.
- This website and all contents ©Kirk Ramdath and specified artists.
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