Waxing Poetic: Harlem Sweeties

2007 January 19
by uptownflavor

Harlem Sweeties

by Langston Hughes

Have you dug the spillvixens.jpg

Of Sugar Hill?

Cast your gims

On this sepia thrill:

Brown sugar lassie,

Caramel treat,

Honey-gold baby

Sweet enough to eat.

Peach-skinned girlie,

Coffee and cream,

Chocolate darling

Out of a dream.

Walnut tinted

Or cocoa brown,

Pomegranate-lipped

Pride of the town.

Rich cream-colored

To plum-tinted black,aeshia.jpg

Feminine sweetness

In Harlem’s no lack.

Glow of the quince

To blush of the rose.

Persimmon bronze

To cinnamon toes.

Blackberry cordial,

Virginia Dare wine—

All those sweet colors

Flavor Harlem of mine!

Walnut or cocoa,

Let me repeat:kelis1.jpg

Caramel, brown sugar,

A chocolate treat.

Molasses taffy,

Coffee and cream,

Licorice, clove, cinnamon

To a honey-brown dream.

Ginger, wine-gold,

Persimmon, blackberry,

All through the spectrum

Harlem girls vary—

So if you want to know beauty’s

Rainbow-sweet thrill,

Stroll down luscious,

Delicious, fine Sugar Hill.

Langston Hughes, “Harlem Sweeties” from Collected Poems. Copyright © 1994 by The Estate of Langston Hughes.

Photos: 1. Vixens from photo shoot, 2. Aeshia De Vore, 3. Kelis

from → Art

2 Responses
  1. 2007 January 19
    Joe permalink

    Natural hair ???

  2. 2007 January 22
    alli permalink

    Thank you U.F. Langston is always right on time.
    I’m from Sugar Hill area *wink*

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