Today on the blog, we’re excited to feature an original poem from one of our scholars. AF East New York Middle student Isaiah read The Great Gatsby as part of his TEAK fellowship and connected it to A Raisin in the Sun, which he’d read in school. He saw that both served as commentary on the American Dream and felt the books resonated with current events in the country, which inspired him to write a poem. Here’s Isaiah explaining how he got the idea, along with the text of his poem.
I was inspired by the lost dream that Gatsby had in the novel, and I immediately saw the parallel to Walter’s lost dream from A Raisin in the Sun. Both of them were hoping to strike it rich, but neither really got what they wanted. Even though they come from different times and locations, they both fail to realize their American Dream. The poem was inspired by this failure and I thought of how, ironically, America is made to seem like a shining city on a hill, when the truth can often be far from it.
Isaiah, poet
Welcome to America,
Land of the free,
Where nothing costs money.
You can be who you want to be
Welcome to America,
Land of Justice
Where the streets are bloodless,
And everyone is Like ‘Trust us.’
Welcome to America,
Land of opportunity
Where no matter your ability
You can engage in any activity
Welcome to America
Land of Greatness,
Since the GDP’s the highest and
Has such moral straightness
Welcome to America
Land of racism
Which is full to the brim despite activism
Welcome to America,
Land of lies,
Where you see Eckleburg’s frowning eyes
Welcome to America
Land of corruption
Where the people’s voice is an eruption
What do you see in America?
Land of these all,
Who are waiting for it to be their all in all
Against America, you could say nothing more.
Actually, it’s been involved in many a bloody war.
We’ve had black presidents, leaders, and councilmen
But Abe Lincoln said: Black men will never equal white men
With July Fourth, we unify the community
But it ain’t a holiday for peeps like me
America’s one great big melting pot!
But for blacks like me, it’s actually getting quite hot.
They always blow up police brutality.
They do it for black on black crime, claim it’s reality
Economically, we’re on top of the world
Let the stories of the homeless, and jobless be unfurled.
We’re disposing of Atomic Weapons!
But you started it when you dropped LB to see what happens.
America has a government of total transparency
Yet I hear it’s hidden many a conspiracy
The way you talk about America, it’s like it’s all bad.
It’s sad that it’s like that as the only home I had.