“At the Cemetery, Walnut Grove Plantation, South Carolina, 1989-poem response 24

I often like poems about historical events, and this poem was no exception. Lucille Clifton's language was what brought this poem to life. The main idea of the poem is to recognize that these slaves, at the Walnut Grove Plantation, were complete nobodies. They didn't even have any records of them. Clifton says that no one mentioned slaves. I might be reading too far into this one, but I kind of think that this idea that people just don't talk about slaves at this plantation, could relate with the fact that a a nation, we like to overlook, and ignore that slavery ever happened because it is such a blemish in out country's stature. It could be a small example on a larger scale. Clifton also tells that only 10 male slaves were documented (although there were many more), she challenges another idea that only men were listed. Why? Clifton is a very brave and honorable woman to stand up for two groups of people that throughout history have been fighting for equl rights as men, and furthermore, white men. I especially like at the end how Clifton repeats 'here lies," four times, just so that the idea of respecting these dead slaves is known. She is saying that had she known their names, she would have paid them the proper respect. This poem is sad, but cool, and I like how Clifton incorporated a much larger picture to just one tour she went on of just one plantation.