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Poem: White Comedy by Benjamin Zephaniah

In this poem, Benjamin Zephaniah reminds us - in a humorous way - that the language we use matters. Why are people blackmailed, but not whitemailed? Why is the black sheep of the family black, not white? And how do words like these influence the way we think about people and the world around us?

Do you want to listen to the author reading his poem? Do an internet search for 'Benjamin Zephaniah' and 'White Comedy'.

Portrait of the British-Jamaican author Benjamin Zephaniah.
The British-Jamaican author Benjamin Zephaniah. Image: Edwardx / CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

White Comedy

I waz whitemailed
By a white witch,
Wid white magic
An white lies,
Branded a white sheep
I slaved as a whitesmith
Near a white spot
Where I suffered whitewater fever.
Whitelisted as a whiteleg
I waz in de white book
As a master of white art,
It waz like white death.

People called me white jack
Some hailed me as a white wog,
So I joined de white watch
Trained as a white guard
Lived off the white economy.
Caught and beaten by de whiteshirts
I waz condemned to a white mass,
Don't worry,
I shall be writing to de Black House.

Copyright © Benjamin Zephaniah,
Bloodaxe Books, www.bloodaxebooks.com, 2012

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