To Sister Annie, Reverend Annie, Comrade, Revolutionary Internationalist, and Organizer
© 7/2/26 Carlos Raúl Dufflar
Lke a seed that blossomed into a flower
Born in Richmond, Virginia,
lived until her family moved to Baltimore
Her father was a minister
and at an early age
Annie became a mother with her first child
and she got married
With her struggling, living in hardship
and struggling to feed her family
That welfare was not heaven
You were just hanging on
Like a shining light, her brother James X,
an advisor to Brother Minister Malcolm X,
taught her the science of struggle
Annie was a 14-year-old young married woman
when she became part of the movement
She founded the Baltimore National Welfare Rights Organization
And in 1963, she went to the
March on Washington
for Peace, Freedom, and Justice
It was the 60s as Sam Cooke sang the song
That a change was coming
She connected with the Baltimore Black Panther Party for a world without oppression
In late 1967 to early 1968,
the original Poor People’s Campaign came about
As Martin Luthier King came and met Annie
and members of the National Welfare Rights Organization to help them
So he asked Annie to organize and go to West Virginia in the Appalachian Mountains
for people to join the Poor People’s Campaign
Annie and the National Welfare Rights Organization were the first ones to march down on Washington, DC, a burnt down city
and laid the stone for Resurrection City
When it opened on May 13, 1968
People from nine Caravans were
and the Mule Train
were the first ones to land at Resurrection City
And people were building tepee-like houses
And every time a house was built
People would cry “Freedom! Freedom!”
The Northeastern Caravan, which I was part of –
Harlem, Now York, May 11th and 12th of 1968
We left heading towards Washington, DC,
and we went to different cities
and we picked up a thousand new members
Our trip was nine days and we arrived at Resurrection City.
From the moment we arrived
We were building our homes
near to Lincoln Memorial.
So the total of people was 5000
living in Resurrection City
We had our own zip code, free telephone, a free general store, medical care, a community center,
And the Diggers came from San Francisco
God’s Eye Bakery Free Bread Forever
I first met Annie while waiting on line
to get our freshly made whole wheat bread
made out of a coffee can
We had butter or peanut butter ir jam
Annie was a strong leader
who was a Panther
and I was a student organizer in SNCC
After six weeks living, marching with our demands
On the seat of power
Under LBJ
They were scared of us
So on June 19 we had Solidarity Day,
Where we had 150,000 people
And it was so hot that day,
that people jumped in to get cool
at the Reflecting Pool
So the midnight came finally
The blue dragon invaded our home on June 23
But the people returned back to their home
But on June 24, the next day, they returned,
with a thousand police and national guards burning our homes
and a mass arrest of 371 people
While the 20,000 Army troops were waiting
if we rebelled, they would come in
while the residents sang
that nobody was gonna turn us around
We’re gonna keep on marching and talking
Until we get to Freedom Land
On the 50th anniversary
of the Poor People’s Campaign
At the West Potomac Park
I met Annie at our former home
But this time it was a white tent
So when I arrived on Amtrak
and took the bus
I got off on my stop
And I saw the white tent
I entered
And Annie saw me and she screamed out
“That’s Carlos’ old self!”
The last time time I talked with her
She said to me, “Hey, baby , are you alright?”
I said, yeah, I’m alright
I celebrate Comrade Annie
Who always loved the poor working class people
To feed the unhoused
And always spoke to the young people
To never stop struggling
She was a Shining Star
that will live with me forever
The struggle continues
Power to the People, Annie!
¡Presente!
