Boyakka! Boyakka! Boyakka!
Boyakka! Boyakka! Boyakka!
Boyakka! Boyakka! Boyakka!
Shots rang out on my street today
Three Black yoots lay dead
shot inna dem head
And dem madda ban har belly an bawl
And dem madda ban har belly an bawl
Boyakka! Boyakka! Boyakka!
Black Uhuru did seh
di yoots of Eglington
won’t put down dem Remington
di yoots of Brixton they have their
45 Smith & Wesson *
But I Afua Cooper seh,
di yoots of Halifax won’t put down
dem scorpion
di yoots of Dartmut
well familiar wid dem glock
Annada one die inna di miggle passage
Annada one die inna di miggle passage
And mammy ban har belly an bawl
And mammy ban har belly an bawl
Here in Halifax
some call it Hellafacts
capital of Nova Scotia
New Caledonia
New Scotland
Albion-ia
Halifax
the shiny white city on the hill
the promised land
the New Jerusalem
our children die
we ask why
As a madda ban har belly an bawl
As a madda ban har belly an bawl
The pastor cry out loud
“peace in the East
put down the guns,
save our sisters and sons”
The police chief seh
“arrest is not the ansa,
we have to get to the root of the matter”
The social worker step up
“we know the ansa
it is social isolation
educational marginalization
economic deprivation
that is the cause of this situation
time to write another dissertation”
No, we do not want this new Jerusalem
let us step up into Mount Zion
Zion train is coming our way! **
Black Uhuru seh
di yoots of Eglington
won’t put down dem Remington
di yoots of Brixton they have their
45 Smith & Wesson
And I Afua Cooper seh
di yoots of Halifax won’t put down
dem scorpion
di yoots of Dartmut
carry dem gun beneath dem shut
How dem get the guns?
How dem get the guns?
Canada has gun control
How dem get the guns?
Shots rang out on my street today
three Black yoots lay dead
shot inna dem head
Annada one killed inna di miggle passage
Annada one murdered inna di miggle passage
Annada one died inna di miggle passage
And mammy ban har belly an bawl,
And mammy ban har belly an bawl!
Mammy ban har belly an bawl
She seh
“mi wash belly
mi only pickney
mi wash belly”
Shots rang out on my street today
three Black yoots lay dead
shot inna dem head
Boyakka! Boyakka! Boyakka!
Boyakka! Boyakka! Boyakka!
Boyakka! Boyakka! Boyakka!
* “Youths of Eglington” is a song by Black Uhuru
** “Zion Train” is a song by Bob Marley
The poem protests gun violence across multiple Black communities in Canada against the backdrop of reggae music.
- The poem is written in Jamaican Patois. It is part of a long tradition of dub poetry, a style of oral poetry that champions the issues and concerns of everyday Jamaicans in the language they speak, as opposed a more academic standard English. There are many examples of this style in terms of dub poetry albums to give you a sense of how the language works with regards to pronunciation and rhythm. See what you can find online and then come back to the poem and read it out loud. Pay attention to how some words are written how they are pronounced like “annada” for “another” or how “miggle” is used for “middle.” As you read the poem aloud, pay attention to how it alternates between English and patois—how does this impact the overall sound of the poem?
- The poet Afua Cooper speaks from her own voice, “I Afua Cooper she.” What effect does her inserting her own name have on the statements she is making?
- Two Reggae songs are mentioned in the poem, “Youth of Eglington” by Black Uhuru and “Zion Train” by Bob Marley. Listen to both of these songs and find the lyrics online. Then return to the poem. How does having a sense of the songs enhance your understanding of the poem?
- The poem begins with a repeated onomatopoeia “Boyakka!” which mimics the sound of gunshots. What is the effect of starting and ending the poem this way?
- The poem deals with location in multiple ways. At once in Jamaica, then on Eglington Street in Toronto—which inspired the above-mentioned song by Black Uhuru—and then Halifax. Cooper demonstrates that the problem of gun violence is widespread. This is where the poem lives, geographically. Why is it important for a poem to live somewhere? How can having a location attached to the poem help bring it to live?
- There are protest poems on many different topics. How can a protest poem help the issue it is trying to raise awareness about and how can it change the narrative about that issue?
Writing activity: Write a poem where a sound, such as “Boyakka!” in this poem, is central to the theme and is repeated throughout the poem.
Afua Cooper, “Shots Rang Out on My Street Today,” from Black Matters. Fernwood Publishing, 2020. Copyright © 2020 by Afua Cooper. Used with permission from Fernwood Publishing. https://fernwoodpublishing.ca/book/black-matters