Léon-Gontran Damas

Léon-Gontran Damas is considered one of the three leaders of the Négritude movement in Francophone literature. Influenced by the poets of the Harlem Renaissance, the aim of the Négritude poets was to debunk the myth of European cultural superiority. In 1937, Damas lit the Francophone world on fire when he published Pigments, a collection of poems that became a rallying cry for the colonized and oppressed. The following poems are excerpted from Graffiti, a collection published in 1952, which continues Damas' discussion of the reprecussions of colonization on a more intimate level.

Published on 07/10/2004

        far from dumpster mornings
        far from winter’s frozen spittle
        far from a man-made sun
        always poised to bring death

        far from dumpster mornings
        far from winter’s frozen spittle
        far from a man-made sun
        always poised to bring death
        far from hands held out to glorious Christian charity

        far from so many
        and so many faces filled with hate
        far from clouds
        that no one sees gather
        and which threaten to suddenly break
        the charm of so many Sunday dressed
        couples

        happy to exist

        JE PENSE AU SALUT DE L’AMOUR DANS LA FUITE

        loin des matins à poubelles
        loin des crachats gelés l’hiver
        loin d’un soleil de confection
        toujours prêt à porter la port
        loin de mains tendues à la belle charité
        [chrétienne
        loin de tant
        et tant de visages de haine
        loin de nuages
        que nul ne voit s’amonceler
        et qui menacent de rompre soudain
        le charme de tant de tête-à-tête
        endimanchés
        joyeux de l’être



        --Translated by Kirsten Halling

Copyright © Léon-Gontran Damas , 2004. All Rights Reserved.