Notes

“Inheritance: The Force of Aperture” considers the murder of Eric Glover and Terrence Rankins in Joliet, IL. by the hands of four individuals who strangled the two and attempted to dismember them. It was later discovered that two of the suspects (possibly three) had sex on their corpses. All four of the suspects were white, while both of the victims were black, spurring a debate as to whether this could be considered a hate crime. The poem also considers the lynching of three black circus workers—Elias Clayton, Elmer Jackson, and Isaac McGhie—in Duluth, MN, after a mob of 5,000 dragged the alleged rapists from their jail cells, harming themselves and police officers during the process. In the image, two men are hanged on a post while the other man is left dead on the ground. The postcard is marked Oct, 1919 when in fact the lynching took place June 15, 1920. For further information, please refer to Without Sanctuary by James Allen.

“Inheritance: Anthem”:

The second section is for Lamar. The third section quotes Beyoncé, “I woke up like dis,” from her track “Flawless” and quotes Talib Kweli, “But I never write to remain silent,” from his track “Stand to the Side.”

“Witness”:

Rashawn Brazell had plans to go to college. Inspired by his mother, Desire Brazell-Jones, he wanted to work with communities in need. He was interested in web design and designing his own wardrobe. He deconstructed other items of clothing to make his own clothes. He visited the community center The Door and volunteered his time as a mentor and tutor for younger children. For more information, visit the podcast OPEN YOUR MIND with Terik King, season 2, episode 5—“The Rashawn Brazell Case,” published 1-26-2010, where much of this information was found.

Italicized words come from “Gay Beau Sought in Body-Chop Slay” by Larry Celona, NY Post (3-20-2006); “Unsolved butchering of 19-year-old Rashawn Brazell enters eighth year without any leads after his body was found in dark Brooklyn subway tunnel” by Pete Donohue, New York Daily News (2-24-2013); and a bulletin requesting information about Rashawn Brazell’s murder issued by the Anti-Violence Project and People of Color in Crisis.

The section, “Witness: The duffle bag recalls dismemberment” takes its form from Mary Cornish’s poem “Fifteen Moving Parts” from her book Red Studio.

The partial quote from Ms. Brazell-Jones, “…and I want the rest of my child,” is from a The New York Times article “A Year After a Teenager Was Dismembered, Still No Answer” (Feb. 13, 2006).

“Often I am Permitted to Return to the City” takes its title and structure from Robert Duncan’s poem “Often I am Permitted to Return to a Meadow.”

“A Survey of Masculinity” is after Aime Césaire’s poem “Horse.”

“Apotheosis” is after “Cross Country” by Roger Reeves.

“He Loved Him Madly” is a partial (15-section) pecha kucha for my father, Calvin Ford, and uses titles from Miles Davis compositions (odd-number stanzas) and various Hip Hop and spoken word tracks (even-number stanzas). In order of appearance, artists of the even-number stanzas are Boogie Down Productions, Jay-Z, The Notorious B.I.G., Amiri Baraka, Wu-Tang Clan, Scarface, and Nas.

“For Joy Be Righteous” takes its epigraph from Roger Reeves.