A Poem by Langston Hughes
Gandhi Is Fasting
Mighty Britain, tremble!
Let your empire’s standard sway
Lest it break entirely—
Mr. Gandhi fasts today.
You may think it foolish—
That there’s no truth in what I say—
That all of Asia’s watching
As Gandhi fasts today.
All of Asia’s watching,
And I am watching, too,
For I am also jim crowed—
As India is jim crowed by you.
You know quite well, Great Britain,
That is it not right
To starve and beat and oppress
Those who are not white.
Of course, we do it too,
Here in the U.S.A.
May Gandhi’s prayers help us, as well,
As he fasts today.