Claude McKay

An early contributor to the Harlem Renaissance, Claude McKay (1889-1948) had an influence on  the major players, most notably Langston Hughes. He wrote of black life in his native Jamaica and in the United States. He wrote of the racism he experienced and his dealings with it. 

When I read his poem If We Must Die, I was touched by the strength of character in his words. His poems are strong and direct. I have read some of McKay's other poems and find them strong and reflecting the many experiences in his life.

If we Must Die

 

If we must die—let it not be like hogs
Hunted and penned in an inglorious spot,
While round us bark the mad and hungry dogs,
Making their mock at our accursed lot.
If we must die—oh, let us nobly die,
So that our precious blood may not be shed
In vain; then even the monsters we defy
Shall be constrained to honor us though dead!
Oh, Kinsmen!  We must meet the common foe;
Though far outnumbered, let us show us brave,
And for their thousand blows deal one deathblow!
What though before us lies the open grave?
Like men we'll face the murderous, cowardly pack,
Pressed to the wall, dying, but fighting back!