Another gem from Slam Camp 2010, Ketia J, a senior at Evans H.S. wrote and performed a sort of Haitian-American pledge of allegiance, appropriately titled “Pledge.” You think it’s an awesome read? Too bad you missed Ketia’s powerful performance.

excerpts from PLEDGE

This society has molded me
Into their own little American
But Haiti I will always be.
Since Saturday May 16
I’ve realized that I have no voice
Because I speak with a native tongue
To a country that’s not my own
Both place to a place
I no longer know

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America…
With my hands clasped to my chest
Four fingers glued together with one appendage
Covering my heart
I hand this pledge
Five days a week for 17 years
I’ve been an American
But you can’t see
The Haitian stamp on my triceps
Creole tattooed on my tongue
And my roots of sugar canes
With the blood of my ancestors
That flows through me…

And to the republic for which it stands…
I stand from falling so deep
In quicksand…

One nation…
Two parents to one birth
Two sides to one tongue
And if home is where your heart is
Then I’ll never be homeless
Because my heart lies in my poem…