Hair

Ruby went to school on Monday

That was the day she wore her hair out,

And shone, the same day Mr. Whoever

Mr. Whatever, with his ‘Kevin Keegan’ quotes to hand

Asked her to move, so other students could

See the board. So she was None.

Elle went to School on Tuesday

With her bunches in

it was school photographs day

Elle forgot to say that every day

She was called Mickey Mouse so many times

Her bunches cried right into her bed.

Her mattress was a metaphor for tears.

Aldan went to School on Wednesday

With his head shaved, cos that was alright

Soon, as he let that Afro grow

It was a school boy smite, snide comments

Finessed the love within’

Hard to love your Afro when so many others don’t.

Jaheim went to school on Thursday

Shrined in his holy hat,

Some kids consistently called

Him mushroom head

They were the mixed race, fair of face ones.

There was a discussion and that was that.

Lauren wore her hair up on Friday 

and every other day too,

Scraped into a tight Afro bun

she played football for Arsenal

and every game she won,

Yet she kept her hair tightly wound

Cos some wounds can’t be undone.

And the sum of Black Britishness

Is the sum of None.

It takes a village right?

So On Saturday and Sunday we took a little time to be the village that looked after all our children. And We Done Did Our Hair.

So When We Come on Monday

with Our Hair

this is 3000 years of  braided-ness

and dread-locked years

of care. We’ll be back on Monday.