Soar, Caged Bird

Soar, Caged Bird

By: Sarah Fox

In honor of Black History Month, I wrote a poem called “Soar, Caged Bird” which pays homage to Maya Angelou’s “Caged Bird” poem. The poem talks about the history of slavery and segregation and how black people were able to rise above that through engaging with their heritage. There is also a charge at the end to keep the hope for freedom and reconciliation alive in America today and for the future.

For centuries, we’ve been silenced,

No one cared to heed our voice,

For decades, we’ve been oppressed,

We never even had a choice.

 

The spirit of our culture was shackled with chains,

The song of our hearts became a faint cry,

Although Satan tried to strip away our freedom,

The hope of our glorious redemption still remains.

 

Sing caged bird,

Never stop flapping your wings,

Soar caged bird,

Let the song of freedom ring!

 

After years of suffering and bondage,

We finally started breaking ground,

The destiny of liberation was in reach,

Yet the barriers of segregation kept us bound.

 

Despite the obstacles we faced,

Our song of victory was never erased,

We broke the bars of separation,

We continued to sing the song of hope over our great nation.

 

Sing caged bird,

Never stop flapping your wings,

Soar caged bird,

Let the song of freedom ring!

 

It’s time for us to embrace the grace that we carry on the inside,

It’s time for us to break these prison bars and wear our heritage with pride!

We have the power to fulfill Dr. Martin Luther King’s dream,

The blazing light of reconciliation will continue to gleam.

Let’s sing the song of freedom, we will no longer be silent,

We can rise above the hate, the agony, and the violence.

 

Sing caged birds,

Never stop flapping your wings,

Soar caged birds,

Let the song of freedom ring!