THEY SAY STEVE BIKO IS DEAD
© Farouk
Asvat
"And
do not say of those who are killed in the way of Allah,
they are dead.
But they live. But you do not
perceive."
•
Quran 2:154
They say Steve Biko is dead.
But
there were nine silences on the Island
Seven
million grudges in the land
There
were 25 million deaths
in
the heart of the country
There
was the dignified silence of his wife
The
silenced silences of his friends
The
unspeakable silence of his mother
When
his nation broke down in grief
When
his skull cracked in defiance
When
he fought against his jailers
In
the loving arms of the captain's city
They say Steve Biko is dead.
But the
ghost of your pleasant face
Still
hovers over the hills of the highveld
Where
the full red moon of Mao ZeDong
Once
hovered over the hills of the highveld
Even
after you took your last journey
To
your first death
In
the back of a police van
Through
a thousand kilometres
Of
brutalised countryside
Even
after you took your first journey
To
your last death
In
the back of an oxwagon
Through
the colonised streets
Of
the apprehensive white town.
They say Steve Biko is dead.
But
still he lives amongst our decisions
Even
if old enemies try to claim him
in
the supreme court of injustice
Even
if old friends try to claim him
in
Tutu's roving circus
They say Steve Biko is dead.
But
still he gives voice to the voiceless
Even
if reformists with expensive houses
And
opportunists with red mercedeses
And
tribalists with little pieces of land
And
black journalists with white voices
Try
to claim him
They say Steve Biko is dead.
But
still he denies them
These
charlatans
Disguised
as revolutionaries
Still
he defies them
These
uncle toms
Camouflaged
in exclusive suits.
They say Steve Biko is dead.
But
Peter Gabriel gives voice to him
on
the international stage
Miami
Vice gives voice to him
on
state television
Riaan
Malan gives voice to him
in
My Traitor's Heart
A
court case gives voice to him
in
the heart of the country
A
video gives voice to him
in
the homes of the oppressed
Cry
Freedom gives voice to him
in
the cinemas of the world
And
an opera gives voice to him
in
the theatres of England.
They say Steve Biko is dead.
But still I give voice to him
Even though my first Biko poem
Was disappeared
Buried in his earth at Zinyoka
But still I give voice to him
Resurrecting his living spirit
Nourishing the earth
That lives where he lives.
And still
They say Steve Biko is dead.
© farouk asvat
[]
composed: 12.09.1977 - upon the assassination of Steve Biko in prison:
12.09.1977 [Johannesburg,
South Africa under apartheid];
(12.09.1987 [Netherlands; South Africa under
apartheid]);
(12.09.1987 [Berkeley; South
Africa under apartheid]);
(12.09.1995 [Kimberley, South
Africa under apartheid]).
[] Acknowledgements:
They Say
Steve Biko Is Dead was
previously published in:
The Wind Still Sings Sad Songs (piquant publications, p118-121, 2006).
on the 35th commemoration
of the assassination of Steve Biko in prison.
The Wind Still Sings Sad
Songs (kindle, 2014);
The Wind Still Sings Sad
Songs (amazon paperback, p115-118,
2014).
The original poem was
confiscated by the Security Police at the Zanempilo Community Clinic in
Zinyoka,
on 19 October 1977, during the nationwide raids on Black Consciousness
organizations,
the banning of its organisations, the closure of its clinics and
publications, and the imprisonment of its members.
have you read? : I Write What I Like by Steve Biko
___________________________________________________________________________
[§] Books by Farouk Asvat:
● Sadness In The House Of Love (novel)
● The Gathering Of The Storm (novel)
● I Dream In Long Sentences
(poetry)
● The Wind Still Sings Sad Songs (poetry)
● A Celebration Of Flames
(poetry)
● The Time Of Our Lives
(poetry)
● This Masquerade (short
stories)
● Bra Frooks … (poetry)*
● The Paanies Are Coming
(short stories)*
● In The
House Of Love (novel)*
● Weapons Of Words (comparative
literature & literary criticism)
¨ all my books are now available on amazon: in paperback & kindle
___________________________________________________________________________
[] please check out my blogs @:
weapons of words: https://faroukasvat-viewpoint.blogspot.com
piquante: https://faroukasvat-piquant.blogspot.com
streetwise: https://faroukasvat-lingo.blogspot.com
quran lectures: https://faroukasvat-quran.blogspot.com
biography: https://faroukasvat-bio.blogspot.com
books by farouk asvat: https://faroukasvat-books.blogspot.com
[] please join me on:
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___________________________________________________________________________
© farouk asvat. All rights reserved.
Farouk
Asvat asserts his moral right to be
identified as the author of this work.
No part of this publication may
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Permission
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Reproduction
of this work without permission, except for scholarly & nonprofit purposes,
is
liable to a payment of 10, 000 ren men bi or US$ 1,500.
farouk asvat can be contacted at: farouk.asvat@gmail.com
[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]
the NOVEL Sadness
In The House Of Love by Farouk
Asvat
is now available on amazon: in paperback @ $15 & kindle @ only $5
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