[ “I wrote this poem in response to the sense of horror I
felt,” says New Orleans poet Skye Jack, “and in memory of my
ancestors who would not have been given the privilege to refuse their
touch.” ] [[link removed]]

PORTSIDE CULTURE

CAN WE TOUCH YOUR HAIR?  
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Skye Jackson
June 16, 2021
Rattle
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_ “I wrote this poem in response to the sense of horror I felt,”
says New Orleans poet Skye Jack, “and in memory of my ancestors who
would not have been given the privilege to refuse their touch.” _

,

 

Can We Touch Your Hair?

By Skye Jackson

at the parades, everyone 

wants to touch my hair.

on the corner 

of st charles and marengo, 

i am cold & smashed & puffy

when two white women 

try to convince me 

that they love my hair

no they _really really_ do 

they say because it is so

black and thick and curly 

and soaking up all of the

water in the damp air.

 

the mousy one says

through an alabama drawl:

gawd, you can do so much with it 

and her blonde friend says:

_ya can’t do a damn thing with mine, _

_won’t even hold a curl. _

she runs away to grab another friend 

and says to her: _stacey, isn’t it even_

_prettier than macy gray’s? _

_we just love her,_

_don’t we?_

they circle me and ask:

_can we touch your hair?_

and then, suddenly,

just like my ancestors long ago,

i am pulled apart

soft

by pale hands 

from all directions.

Skye Jackson was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana. She has
served as a poetry editor for _Bayou _

_Magazine, French Quarter Journal _& _Tilted House. _Her work has
appeared or is forthcoming in _Electric _

_Literature, __Green Mountains Review_, _RATTLE_ and elsewhere. Her
debut chapbook, _A Faster Grave_, won the

2019 Antenna Prize. She was a finalist for the 2020 _RATTLE_ Poetry
Prize. In 2021, she won the AWP

Intro Journals Award and was twice nominated for _Best New
Poets_. _Poets & Writers_ has recognized her as a

New Orleans “Poet to Watch.”

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