PC POEM #2
C Ra McGuirt
when people (usually white people)
get hold of more money than they usually have,
& begin to spend it on things they don't really need
(like anything other than food, clothes, rent)
their quaint&curious term for this is
'acting nigger rich.'
it has a cruel element of truth--
when poor people get their pockets full,
it makes them crazy. they want that car,
that stereo, that bag of dope
they've been denied before.
they don't want to wait to spend it
on health insurance 3 months hence.
it's not smart, but we do it,
we poor people,
& sooner or later we're poor again
complaining bitterly about our poverty.
still... 'nigger rich'? however crude,
it does have a certain poetic appeal,
but when you go to describing
the behavior of people who spend
much more than they can possibly afford
on things that they don't really need,
wouldn't 'predominately white
elected government official rich'
be a lot more accurate?
i know this term is much too long,
& it doesn't tickle the tongue
like 'nigger rich',
but goddammit, it's the only
politically correct alternative,
& being concerned with the language,
as well as the people who mangle it,
that's the best i can do for now.
besides, i'm on my way to office town
for 3 or 4 more word processor ribbons,
an extra pack of floppy disks
& a couple more reams of paper,
while i'm still
african-american
affluent.
