Negro Digest - Freedom Archives

"Naw, the cash draw wuz clean,
but sumbody musta forgot duh
piece ."
"I guess sumbody lef you a birthday
present Duck," Bunky grinned .
"Lets celebrate yo birthday,"
Blue said, pointing the gun at the
feet of us young dudes who had
been standing around .
"All right lil niggas, lets see you
dance ."
We jumped up and down hoping
the crazy nigga wouldn't shoot,
cause we knew he would, with no
sweat.
"Gimme duh gun fo duh poleece
bust alla us!" Bunky rapped . "I'll
stash the mutha ~.t my crib ."
Blue took one last look at the
blue steel death-dealer and handed
it to Bunky who moved quickly
back into the darkness of the hallway
.
"How old you Duck?"
"Eighteen ."
"Lets whup a nigga eighteen
times for yo birthday," Blue suggested
. Duck nodded and looked
away for a stick . A piece of twoby-four
lay in the dusty road . Behind
him . He walked over and
picked it up .
"I guess this'll do ."
At that moment two young white
boys came into view . They were
heading south on Wentworth Avenue
.
56
"Who dem white boys?" somebody
asked .
"Dey aint from duh hood," Tutti
said . "Les gitem ."
When they noticed that we were
near them, they started to run . The
railroad embankment made escape
difficult, if not impossible . One of
them outdistanced us and made the
corner. He stood there at the corner
watching us quiz and hold his
friend .
"Please let me go, I didnt do
anything to youse guys."
"Today yo birthday, hunky,"
Blue shouted .
"It's not my birthday," the white
boy said with puzzlement in his
voice .
"It might as well be, cause we
gon beat yo ass wit this stick ."
Juicy and Cheetah held him
while Blue started to slam the twoby-four
into the seat of the squirming
boy's pants .
"You dirty Black Bastards!!!",
he screamed .
Tutu's fist caught him in the
"bastards" that screamed from his
lips . Blood and spit flew .
During the whole thing I was
sooo happy that these boys had
happened along at the right moment.
Almost a miracle . I decided
that the moment was a good time
to vacate the scene while the white
boy wuz the brunt of the hostility .
E. Van Higgs, author of the story, "Sketch in Blue," is a Chicagoan .
He is a member of the Organization of Black American Culture
(OBAC) Writers' Workshop .
March 1970 NEGRO DIGEST