(04 October 1943 / Germany)

poet Herbert Nehrlich
What do you think this poem is about?

Black Or Green?

A racist who was loud and mean
arrived with buddies on the scene.
They pointed fingers at the Black
and then prepared for an attack.

The black boy asked why they would pick
to beat and torture with a stick
a little boy who'd done no wrong
the racist said 'you look like Kong.

'It is the colour that we hate
that's why we now will beat you, mate.'
The fellow pleaded, 'don't be mean,
I think I am a shade of green.'

The racists, though, yelled, 'never mind,
we're white and also colourblind.'

Submitted: Friday, June 30, 2006
Edited: Thursday, August 12, 2010

Comments about this poem (Black Or Green? by Herbert Nehrlich )

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  • Tara very irritated with PH injustice (7/1/2006 3:19:00 AM)

    Says it all, and brilliantly as ever. A smile with a message. More threatening to my mind though are those who are not 'loud' and mean but articulate and passive in expressing their misguided prejudices. Fortunately there aren't too many of them. Well done H.

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  • Alison Cassidy (7/1/2006 2:07:00 AM)

    Great send up Herbie. And you make a strong point too! love, Allie Pie

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  • Scarlett Treat (6/30/2006 11:03:00 PM)

    As I said on forum, this is right to the point! A color blind white person, armed with anger and a stick! Lethal combination, and an embarrassment for the rest of us.

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  • Mary Nagy (6/30/2006 8:45:00 PM)

    A great addition to the ''Color-Coding'' that seems to be going on here lately Herbert. I should've expected a wonderful response in rhyme from you on this subject! Sincerely, Mary

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  • Mahnaz Zardoust-Ahari (6/30/2006 8:36:00 PM)

    Nice! sort of like one of my other poems. :) Too much of it going around lately.

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