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eight hundred lives

Toxteth where I reside

Recital of Toxteth where I reside
Download .mp3 version [22s | 623Kb]

Come with me yes I'll be your guide
To the city where I reside
Lets take a walk
So we can talk
About Liverpool on Merseyside

In the sixties Liverpool
Made its name
It went international
Well crucial
Admired at home and abroad
Everybody wanted to speak Scouse
Liverpool you're hard

Then the dread times came
And you lost your fame
Pressure hit Liverpool

Now checkout Toxteth my dwelling place
Can you believe your eyes
There are beautiful houses on elegant streets
I know you'll be surprised
Because the media paint a picture
Of the people in a negative light
They magnified the rundown places
And ignored the ones which are out of sight

Signature on poem
Signature: Love, Life & Laughter Levi 2006

So forget the ghetto mentality
Because we are not ghettoites
We are talented people
With a lot to give
The oldest Black community in Europe
And we're positive

Now I admit in Toxteth
That things they can get rough
But if you lived down here you would overstand
We just don't get enough
So we need the opportunity
To make a positive contribution
So we can feel good in this neighbourhood
And improve our situation

© Levi Tafari
April 1989


National Museums Liverpool

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