spiro’s scene, melville 2005
a bunch of revolutionary heroes are sitting at spiro’s
nobody knows what’s actually going on
the topic of debate is politics versus economics
kagiso grins and asks “what are we campaigning for?”
itumeleng tightens his brentwoods and yells emphatically “the beginning of the real struggle”
another round is ordered
everybody’s onto the hard tack by now
norbert from surinam is getting maudlin
“my parents were punished for speaking papiemento.”
bongani exhales slowly and deliberately, “the mother tongue”
the whole group responds: “the mother tongue”
the repetition is whispered low and grumbling
it’s a chorus from the dark side
just then lightning flash an ‘im weak heart
drop
norbert continues, “we were romanticizing the notion of liberation?”
itumeleng rejects this notion, “who is us?”
s’bu finishes his malt whiskey and orders another - “the campaign is ourselves”
itumeleng can hardly balance by now, he’s hitched his brentwoods up, his words slur themselves against the sides of his mouth,
“lejima, the collective, means a lot to me”
s’bu castigates kagiso loudly, “kagiso is trying to run away from his shadow”
kagiso retorts snappily, “ag man, blackness isn’t the issue, africanness is.”
another round of hard tack
now everybody’s mumbling and stumbling
it’s the revolutionary state of mind anno 2005
we have to come at ease with the whole thing
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