The Dance Committee

(Concerning Jean-Léon Destiné)

I am the token negro

I sit in the colored section with Fanon in hand

(to demonstrate my militancy)

and a very dry martini

(ingredients: yellow grass and a green faggot

over lightly)

while circumcised flies buzz brassy smells over my head

The women (obviously my superiors)

White sharp lines

and light-blue mascara

reaching all the way down beyond the red neck

crossing the middle age spread

form a double V (at home and the office)

spinning spidery daydreams of cloth

once covering and once removed

dripping babies

I asked why

the group wouldn’t be in the Black community

(it was Black French—which I should point out

has nothing to do with sex)

And was told quite soundlee

that just because they’re colored don’t

mean they’re not artists too

THEY’RE ARTISTS TOO AND COLOR

AIN’T GOT NOTHING TO DO WITH IT

AND WHY OH WHY WON’T YOU PEOPLE

LET US FORGET YOU’RE COLORED TOO

Token Negroes

I do believe, at least I was told,

and it is very important

for future exchanges

And again I must point out sex is not the issue

that we should simply fuck

tokenism