Between a crisis in racial justice and Covid, the year 2020 was filled with events that prompt witnessing and reckoning. Masked Man, Black, by Frank X. Walker (Accents Publishing, 2020), subtitled Pandemic & Protest Poems, is a collection of brilliant poems that that speak to these subjects with tenderness and humanity, but also with unflinching honesty. Walker evokes with spot-on details, like fingerprints at a crime scene, a clear perception of structural racism permeating our society. He writes about COVID, sometimes weaving it in with social justice issues. He even has a few poems for Donald Trump, such as the poem “Mendacity,” in which he takes actual quotes from Trump to create a dictionary entry for the word “mendacious.” Mixed in among the political poems are personal poems, such as “Mamasorri School” about family life during the time of COVID, and “Mother’s Day.”
One of the features that makes Walker’s poems so beautiful is his ability to write about social and political issues while displaying wide-ranging emotions held together with emotional balance and a steady flame of perception. Those holding contrary political views who might otherwise be offput by what Walker reveals will have difficulty turning away from his work because the power of Walker’s humanity is commanding in its honesty. He nails it by just describing what’s true.
The poems are accessible, employing simple language with elegance and sophisticated sensitivity. Though all the poems deserve a quote, here’s a few lines from the title poem, “Masked Man, Black”: All the chalk outlines are white/ All the states are red/ Coronavirus doesn’t discriminate/ racists still do.
Walker is the first African-American to be named Kentucky Poet Laureate, the author of ten books of poetry, and the recipient of numerous awards and honors. The book is dedicated to “Keith, Breonna, Bill, Chadwick, and the countless others stolen away in 2020.” The cover of the book is a painting by the author. This volume will appeal both to a general audience as well as seasoned poetry aficionados. It’s a damn good book.
