{"id":3696,"date":"2017-03-21T16:32:42","date_gmt":"2017-03-21T23:32:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/?p=3696"},"modified":"2017-03-21T16:32:42","modified_gmt":"2017-03-21T23:32:42","slug":"ian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2017\/ian\/","title":{"rendered":"Little Black Me: From Africa to America &#8212; a poem by Ian Macklin Sims"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>One City One Story 2017 Writing Contest<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>3rd place<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Middle School category<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Ian Macklin Sims<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Grade 7, Blair Middle School<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLittle Black Me: From Africa to America\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Summary: \u00a0<em>A true poem written from the perspective of a young black male who feels as though he is left unappreciated.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Little black me, little black me,<\/p>\n<p>In a world where my people are not free,<\/p>\n<p>Where I need just a closer walk with Thee,<\/p>\n<p>Little black me, little black me.<br \/>\nFunny black me, funny black me,<\/p>\n<p>What\u2019s so funny \u2018bout little black me?<\/p>\n<p>Living up to your ruthless expectations,<\/p>\n<p>To then have to deal with your cruel confrontations.<br \/>\nFunny black me, funny black me,<\/p>\n<p>You laugh as if something\u2019s funny about little black me,<\/p>\n<p>You stare, then laugh, then repeat. What a feat.<\/p>\n<p>I have a slight glimpse now of what you think is funny.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Ugly black me, ugly black me,<\/p>\n<p>What an ugly, bananna-lovin- monkey<\/p>\n<p>What a disturbing sight to see,<\/p>\n<p>That ugly black me.<br \/>\nThe ugly black me that all of you see,<\/p>\n<p>Whom you never appreciate\u2026 what a strong word, huh?<\/p>\n<p>Well, see, you \u201cappreciated\u201d us enough to come all the way to Africa, the motherland of Earth, gather us up, scare us by terror, throw us on boats in which we could not move, fed us nothing, gave us nothing, let us die in the arms of our dead brothers and sisters, threw us into the arms of the white man who threw us into the arms of enslavement until Abraham Lincoln said THAT\u2019S ENOUGH over 250 years later with the help of Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Nat Turner, and Soujurner Truth, then said \u201cWait, we don\u2019t want them here in \u2018our\u2019 America,\u201d which everyone knows in their dear heart that it was built by the bare hands of BLACK men and women, blacks who were then segregated for 72 years, \u201clet free,\u201d then who were put back on the slaveship going to either prison or the cemetery, either life at Harvard or life gets Harder, either fairly well or on welfare, enjoying the shade of tall trees and before we know it, we are hanging from them.<br \/>\nUgly black me gets his scars from all that he\u2019s been through,<\/p>\n<p>So don\u2019t call me ugly, call me human,<\/p>\n<p>I know that my level of education surprises you,<\/p>\n<p>I don\u2019t think you know that your little miseducation scheme, it didn\u2019t<\/p>\n<p>work.<\/p>\n<p>Not many people can relate to my experiences.<\/p>\n<p>Y\u2019all just got little love taps.<\/p>\n<p>We got fatal beatings.<\/p>\n<p>A whipping sentence was a death sentence.<\/p>\n<p>Sentenced to death while yearning for freedom, going to the extreme<\/p>\n<p>limits to get it.<\/p>\n<p>Yeah, I may be little, I may be funny&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>But I know good and well God makes no mistakes.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>To view the list of the contest\u00a0winners: \u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2017\/the-traveler-contest-winners\/\">OCOS 2017 The Traveler Contest Winners<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>One City One Story 2017 Writing Contest 3rd place Middle School category Ian Macklin Sims Grade 7, Blair Middle School \u201cLittle Black Me: From Africa to America\u201d Summary: \u00a0A true poem written from the perspective of a young black male who feels as though he is left unappreciated. &nbsp; Little [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":34,"featured_media":3698,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[92],"class_list":["post-3696","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-writing","tag-contest"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/03\/ocos2017_isims.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/s5ZwbD-ian","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3694,"url":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2017\/the-traveler-contest-winners\/","url_meta":{"origin":3696,"position":0},"title":"The Traveler Contest Winners","author":"Jane Gov","date":"March 21, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"We are pleased to announce\u00a0the\u00a0One City One Story 2017 \"The Traveler\" Art and Writing Contest winners! The winning entries were honored during an award ceremony followed by a reception on March 18, 2017.\u00a0The winning entries are\u00a0currently displayed\u00a0at Central Library in the Great Hall, and will remain in exhibit\u00a0for the next\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Agendas &amp; News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Agendas &amp; News","link":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/agendas-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/03\/ocos2017_contest_title.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/03\/ocos2017_contest_title.png?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/03\/ocos2017_contest_title.png?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2927,"url":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2016\/desert-dark-teen-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":3696,"position":1},"title":"Desert Dark &#8212; teen review","author":"Teen Blogger","date":"June 3, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Review by Satya Rajendra, Grade 7 Desert Dark by Sonja Stone Nadia Riley has been selected to go to an elite school known as Desert Mountain Academy. What she or her parents don\u2019t know is that the school is actually a secret training facility for future CIA black-ops members. But\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Teen Reviews&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Teen Reviews","link":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/teen-reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"desertdark","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2016\/05\/desertdark-200x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5077,"url":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2019\/black-enough-stories-of-being-young-and-black-in-america-teen-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":3696,"position":2},"title":"Black Enough: Stories of Being Young and Black in America &#8212; Teen Review","author":"Teen Blogger","date":"June 29, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Review by Nina Dinan, 15 Black Enough: Stories of Being Young and Black in America\u00a0Edited by Ibi Zoboi This collection of short stories examines the many dimensions of African American experiences through the eyes of multiple young protagonists. Different writers give voice to each story, and their plot lines are\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book Reviews&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Book Reviews","link":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/teen-reviews\/book-reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":4505,"url":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2017\/writing\/","url_meta":{"origin":3696,"position":3},"title":"Get published:  Where to submit your writing","author":"Jane Gov","date":"December 26, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Are you a writer looking to get published? Here are some places to submit your writing: \u00a0 Pasadena Public Library - Teen Zine Open to teens ages 12-18, for Pasadena Public Library patrons only. Submissions are open twice a year; deadlines: June 30 and December 31. Submission site:\u00a0\u00a0https:\/\/tinyurl.com\/pplzine \u00a0 Light-Bringer\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Features&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Features","link":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/opinion\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/12\/typewriter.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/12\/typewriter.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/12\/typewriter.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/12\/typewriter.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3747,"url":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2017\/kristina-yin\/","url_meta":{"origin":3696,"position":4},"title":"Prologue to Waking Up in a New World &#8212; art by Kristina Yin","author":"Jane Gov","date":"March 21, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"One City One Story 2017 Art Contest 2nd place High School category Kristina Yin Grade 11, Flintridge Preparatory School \u201cPrologue to Waking Up in a New World\u201d Multimedia colored pencils;\u00a07 x 10.5 inches This image has great balance and color contrast\u2014the use of color juxtaposed with black and white focuses\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Art &amp; Crafts&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Art &amp; Crafts","link":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/steam\/crafts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/03\/ocos2017_kristinayin.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/03\/ocos2017_kristinayin.png?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/03\/ocos2017_kristinayin.png?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/03\/ocos2017_kristinayin.png?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/18\/files\/sites\/18\/2017\/03\/ocos2017_kristinayin.png?resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5633,"url":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/2020\/new-ebooks-april-2020-edition\/","url_meta":{"origin":3696,"position":5},"title":"New eBooks &#8212; April 2020 edition","author":"Jane Gov","date":"April 3, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"New YA Books You can borrow books online on\u00a0Overdrive\u00a0or Cloud Library\u00a0with your library card! Catwoman: Soulstealer Sarah J. Maas\u00a0\u00b7 Random House Books for Young Readers Pages: 384 Format: eBook Sizzling with action and suspense, #1 New York Times bestselling author SARAH J. MAAS delivers a coming-of-age Selina Kyle who will\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Agendas &amp; News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Agendas &amp; News","link":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/category\/agendas-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/res.nextgoodbook.com\/img\/simple_news\/Blue\/HTML\/images\/split.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/res.nextgoodbook.com\/img\/simple_news\/Blue\/HTML\/images\/split.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/res.nextgoodbook.com\/img\/simple_news\/Blue\/HTML\/images\/split.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3696","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/34"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3696"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3696\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3699,"href":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3696\/revisions\/3699"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3698"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3696"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3696"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pasadena-library.net\/teens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3696"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}