From “Banana [ ]”
To develop new banana exports
the Military Junta in a series of decrees 40
prepared ceremonial dishes
of bananas and honored41
the cadaver and consuming the
charred and crushed bones in a banana mush 42
ousted the president and installed
military officers with ties to banana plantations.43
On dead banana leaf or inflorescence tissues
they disperse by wind and water.45
it has ten hands
they will cut off one hand
there was
a commercial / aspect
of banana27 workers
left sterile
from handling
nematicides
used in banana28
mixture oozes
from
the severed
crown
banana growers 37 bring
a song
about banana 38
I try to hide under the banana leaves when I hear the planes 39
give children bananas
before bed because it can smother
or suffocate102
the bags are used
to cover
bananas ripening103
bananas give children
energy 104
knives and machetes /
hauled heavy loads
of bananas 105
young
banana plant / purchased
by banana transnationals 106
is banana108
hunger banana109
speckled banana110
with banana111
bullets banana112
plant banana113
the banana114
first banana115
tender banana116
American banana117
day banana118
to banana119
be banana120
in banana121
and banana122
of banana123
American banana124
tender banana125
to banana126
be banana127
a banana128
domesticated banana129
object banana130
overripe banana131
as banana132
an banana133
empire banana134
what banana135
ape banana136
among banana137
you banana138
bore banana139
the banana140
first banana141
desire banana142
what banana143
manufactured banana144
nanostructure banana145
prevents banana146
grace banana147
blossoming banana148
rats banana149
gnaw banana150
fabrications banana151
like banana152
a banana153
President banana154
cue banana155
the banana156
canned banana157
applause banana158
to banana159
be banana160
one banana161
of banana162
many banana163
but banana164
small banana165
and banana166
bruised banana167
like banana168
me banana169
who banana170
will banana171
collect banana172
me banana173
when banana174
I banana175
am banana176
ready banana177
more banana178
flowers banana179
please banana180
ok banana181
what banana182
wild banana183
flowers banana184
injure banana185
such banana186
sweet banana187
brown banana188
soil banana189
yellow banana190
flowers banana191
purple banana192
flowers banana193
red banana194
how banana195
plump banana196
is banana197
da banana198
golden banana199
crown banana200
da banana201
local banana202
children banana203
healthy banana204
grown banana205
dead banana206
oh banana207
endangered banana208
baby banana209
lost banana210
amidst banana211
lush banana212
eddoes banana213
do banana214
not banana215
plummet banana216
under banana217
global banana218
fluctuations banana219
another banana220
and banana221
another banana222
lonely banana223
breath banana224
caresses banana225
slender banana226
petioles banana227
in banana228
the banana229
deepening banana230
country banana231
yellow banana232
flowers banana233
purple banana234
flowers banana235
red banana236
inspect banana237
my banana238
tragic banana239
skin banana240
my banana241
corky-scab banana242
the banana243
nation- banana244
sized banana245
ripe banana246
spots banana247
our banana248
tender banana249
hours banana250
scale banana251
can banana252
make banana253
a banana254
wound banana255
seem banana259
smaller banana256
We had to organise the campesinos and the banana workers who didn’t have homes, in order to occupy land where there were no titles or land not on the property register.
This was land not documented as belonging to anybody but the companies had appropriated it as though they were the owners.
My actions of course resulted in me being persecuted and going to prison 22 times.
I was also submitted to torture at the hands of the authorities.
You have to remember that the government of this country at that time boasted about defending private property, but in justifying this, the government defended property which wasn’t private.
All a company had to do was put up a sign up on a thousand-hectare area of land, for example, saying Del Monte, even though it wasn’t their property.
All they had to do was put a fence around it and bring in a guard or two, or in some cases a lot of guards to protect it, as though it belonged to them.
For us this was both illogical and unjust as there were so many homeless workers, so many unemployed banana workers who were suffering.
For us the most sensible thing was to make use of this land by planting what we eat.
For instance we grow: cassava, rice, beans, maize, tequisque, yampí ... 257
Notes:
Portions of “Banana [ ]” appeared first in the book Banana [ ] / we pilot the blood by Paul Hlava Ceballos and Quenton Baker (The 3rd Thing, 2021) and are reprinted here with the wholehearted support of the publisher. To read the footnotes, please refer to that text.
Source: Poetry (December 2021)