The history of Guyana has been written in the main from a romantic European perspective. Nevertheless, the fact remains that the spirit of Guyana is a black-African one. The African slave (Afro-Guyanese) was the only race capable of working the harse plantation lands and breaking and laying the bricks for the Guyana sea-walls from the late 16th and early 17th century and despite European exploitation still survive this ebony voyage. Solid as a Rock.

Ebony Voyage
Black Mamba. Hiding deep in the heart of Africa. You’ve poisoned our seed. Stigmatised our creed.

With your venomous stain / You’ve left us in pain. Torture and cruelty / Written on the brain.

On many a long Caribbean trip / We endured your cruel whip. With every stroke / You watched us bleed. A resolute breed / This Afreecan creed.

Shackled with cold steel / We spun the wheel. As you swung your hip / And released the whip. We bit our lip / Swallowed our spit / And muscled the ship.

Backs of rock and hands of stone. You tried hard to break bone. Black slaves – muscles rippling live ocean waves. This is Ebony creed. No sapling weed.

There’s irony in this slavery trip. With every crack of Black Mamba’s whip / Ebony genes recorded a negative hit. Thru centuries of inflicted pain / We’ve inherited an indelible stain. We’ve ruined our kin / By flaying their skin. Whether we fight or pay on the night / This Ebony legacy is Black Mamba’s herasy.

Now we’re free / What do we see? Ebony light shining bright / Spoilt by the indelible sight Of Black Mamba’s blight.

Note: The Black Mamba (dendroaspis polylepis) snake is found in Kenya and other parts of Africa. The Black Mamba measures approximately 11 feet and is one of the world's most poisonous snakes, with its venom taking less than 10 minutes to paralyse and kill its prey. There is no cobra-like 'show-boating' during Black Mamba's attack and the size of the prey is irrelevant to this snake. Both Black and Green Mambas are found in Africa. The Green Mamba has overall green skin and is from the same species as the Black Mamba. However, the Black Mamba's skin is a yellowish-white complexion and the inside of its mouth is totally black - coal mouth. Black Mamba is White!