Ironers, by Catherine Allen

The Ironers, by Jacob Lawrence (USA) 1943.

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Ironers

The weight!
And the heat.
Strong black women bearing down
on other people’s clothes –
 
            blue checkered dress
            orange striped shirt
            insect-patterned shawl
 
-- they  (the ironers)
are faceless, identical
in sky-blue smocks
sky-blue caps
pressing down
heavy   heavy   black rectangles
while behind them rises
 
red
jagged orange
endless blue
sadness
servitude
rage

Catherine Allen

Catherine Allen is a cultural anthropologist and writer.  Her publications include poems (Rhino, Anthropology & Humanism), ethnography, creative non-fiction and an ethnographic drama.  She lives in Greenbelt, MD with her dog Jimmy.