Damn you, Obama..

Apparently I'm not the only one who feels this way.... this is a clip of a spoken word performance by Darren Dauchan at the Urbana Slam Finals at the Bowery Poetry Club in May of 2007.

Updated with the words under the jump....

Damn You Barack Obama, You Pretty Motha fucker

Damn, damn, damn!
Damn you Barack Obama,
sounds like Osama,
and don't make me mention your middle name:  Hussein
His middle name is Hussein, what?

Let me tell you something Mr. Senator:
Stop being so fucking charming!
Cut it out!
We like that shit!
Strutting like Sidney Poitier
Killing the propaganda of politics with logic like Malcolm
And finding common ground like Martin
You a pretty motherfucker.
Sucker!

You think this country is ready for you?
Oh what, you gon' make them ready for you?
I downloaded your speech on youtube, pshht, it was a'ight.
Actually it was more than all right it was fucking great!
Why you gotta be so eloquent?
White folks' mouths dropped in awe, black folks' mouths smile with pride,
Why you gotta get everybody all worked up man?

And I'll admit I, I, I broke down and I bought your book, pshht, it was a'ight.
Actually it was more than all right it was fucking fabulous!
Why you gotta be so prolific?
Paragraphs profound with remnants of Ralph Ellison,
Lines linger with a love of language and literature, you're a fascinating motherfucker.

And I got news for you, I hate to break it to you,
But I made a vow to the heavens that if this dude ran
Man if this dude actually ran...
I'd join the campaign.
Damn!

Dammit Barack!  You piss me off!
Because you have me daring to believe in you.
I worry about you, dawg.
Cause you know as well as I do that great people's lifespans don't last long.
I catch myself saying prayers for you at night.

Punk.

And I’m wondering when this honeymoon will hurtle to a halt
When will these expectations expire
When will your fame fizzle to a frenzy as this country and its people turn on you as they often do.
And I've seen the evils that leaders do
The fractions of faults folded behind business suits
Under the presented nobility rest adultery, hypocrisy, corruption and contradiction.

When will your demons come to light?
When will your skeletons creep from the closet?
Slip and say the wrong thing,
Start compromising yourself, your ideals, your integrity, 'til there is nothing left of you.
Because you know as well as I do that great people with good intentions
Have lost their souls in the process,
Fighting for freedom but in the end settling for power
But we're a needy people.

We we demand so much of our heroes, we forget they're human beings, placing pedestals so high no mere mortal could reach them.
Longing for saints when all we really want is someone to aspire to be like.
To remind us that we can all be better but our hearts have been broken.
It's as if we're learning to love again.
Yet I still can't help it, not have faith in you, not wish the best for you.
So damn you Barack.

For turning this cynic into a believer in the ideal of the Audacity of Hope damn you Obama.
rhymes with Osama
you courageous
intelligent
impressive
distinguished,
pretty
muh'fucka.

Comments

[Gina Spadafori]

I. LOVE. IT.

[Christie]

I know. I have watched it now 357897 times.

[Red]

How did I not find this before?? I love and adore urban poetry. Yes, I used to watch Def Poetry Jam, for every stupid one, there was a gem. I'm gonna go watch this again, scuse me, bye.

[victoria]

How sick am I that I get my best political information from my favorite dog blog? Thanks for this clip- I just spent the weekent wearing my Obama t-shirt in rural Nv to great acclaim.
Love,
Victoria

[Christie]

How sick am I that I get my best political information from my favorite dog blog?

Don't know how sick you are, LOL, but you sure made MY night!

[Travis]

Great poetry. Loved it.

I don't know if I told you, but I found myself voting for Obama in the primary election in california.

I actually like both of Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, but on that day, decided that maybe it's okay to dream about a world that changes and a country that has hope as it's standard bearer, so I voted for Obama ... which shocked the hell out of me, I thought I had long ago surrendered to cynicism.

Travis