You and your whole race Poem by Langston Hughes

You and your whole race

Rating: 4.9


You and your whole race.
Look down upon the town in which you live
And be ashamed.
Look down upon white folks
And upon yourselves
And be ashamed
That such supine poverty exists there,
That such stupid ignorance breeds children there
Behind such humble shelters of despair—
That you yourselves have not the sense to care
Nor the manhood to stand up and say
I dare you to come one step nearer, evil world,
With your hands of greed seeking to touch my throat,
I dare you to come one step nearer me:
When you can say that
you will be free!

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
* Sunprincess * 03 January 2016

........an interesting write ★

24 21 Reply
Tom Allport 11 February 2017

a very powerful poem about what happens when we don't share and greed takes over us.

21 20 Reply
Janet Madison 04 March 2018

2018, racism alive and well. Shameful.

14 10 Reply
Arlene Martinez 04 June 2021

It is 2021 and Racism is still here. Humans sucl

0 0
Tazzy 02 April 2018

I always loved how, when reading his poems, Hughes made me feel like he was talking directly to me. I read this poem as a child and felt very stirred by it. I'm a middle-class white woman, and I still felt like this was pointed at me, both accusing me of my faults and encouraging me to be better. I love Langston Hughes.

10 11 Reply
Dr Antony Theodore 18 June 2020

I dare you to come one step nearer, evil world, With your hands of greed seeking to touch my throat, I dare you to come one step nearer me: very good poem. tony

1 0 Reply
billy bob 15 January 2020

eat a fat turkeyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

2 3 Reply
Goose 08 November 2019

I love poems so muchhhhhhhhhhhhh

1 1 Reply
Michael Walker 25 July 2019

A very even-handed cosideration of his owm negro people. Fair enough criticism.

1 1 Reply
Mahtab Bangalee 04 April 2019

Excellent great poem written on the RACE and peoples' fundamental living rights discrimination

2 3 Reply
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