Melanated Nature 

by Libaharan Ravindran

We grew up strong in nature, rooted to indigenous ways, 

Using old ice cream tubs for placing curry in, being zero waste, 

When I spot one of us in a green, rural space, 

My back goes soft and my heart expands wide, 

To engulf the resting of my nervous system quietly, 

We face racism next to verandas of blue skies and open fields, 

The contradiction of biodiversity and racial injustice goes missing, 

In the whiteness of colonial minds, we barely exist; 

On the margins, we thrive like heather and juniper groves, 

A melanated nature is justice lending its hand, 

To divine co-creation, moving mountains in brown sand, 

Tamarind peeled, mustard seed threshed by bulls, 

Cleaning the ivory stolen by greedy men, 

Picking up the rubbish left by privileged dispositions; 

The aniseed cloudy like waves on a sea, 

Click into gear, mechanical twitches in glitches, 

Salivate mouths that kiss pretty things softly, 

Our love extends beyond material figures, 

Knowing trees to be pillars of the community, 

Extracting wealth from those most vulnerable and in need, 

Is the premise this capitalist world relies upon, 

Smudging the erasure, reminding ourselves of a lost past. 

Libaharan Ravindran is a spoken word poet,
community organiser and social justice
activist from Sri Lankan Tamil heritage, born
in Norway and presently living in Southgate,
North London. Liba has been using his
poetry for grassroots change and has cofounded a collective in Firebrand Poets which platforms marginalised artists.