This is polemic. Biafra was (is) part of Nigeria and there was a nasty civil war and famine when I was a child. Which is when Baxter wrote this: like much polemical poetry, it uses simple rhymes and a song structure.
Because that satire increases.
It is worth noting that New Zealand in the 1970s was a social democracy: the conservatives preserved it while the left preached communism. And the old MPs in Bellamys (the resturant in Parliament for MPs) who were worried about the credit squeeze were of the left.
The deathsheads of Biafra
Are haunting Bellamys
Where scotch and soda trickle down
The necks of old MPs
And some men talk of justice
But most the credit Squeeze.The corpses of Biafra
Stand at the mirror when
Our daughters use some hair spray
And paint their lids again
And wear a thirty dollar dress
To catch the eyes of men.The small skulls of Biafra
Look in the window while
Our children munch their biscuits
And drink their milk and smile
To see the talking animals
Above the TV dial.The thin ghosts of Biafra
Watch while our sons drink beer
And fork out dough for petrol
And put the car in gear
And drive ten miles to another hop
And let their girlfriends steer.The starved eyes of Biafra
Observe the women who
Buy toys for their own children
Enough to stock a zoo
And plan a trip to Sydney
When the business deal goes through.The dark bones of Biafra
Will never leave their door
Because all things are joined in Christ
And the rich must feed the poor
Or lie like broken dummies
In Hell’s department store.The dead child of Biafra
Will lie on Christmas Day
In the cribs of all the churches
Upon the rotting hay
For those who did not feed Him
But threw His Life away.But those who showed Him mercy
Will find a Live Child there
To smile at them and give them grace
And hope beyond despair
And sins as old as mountains
Will melt into the air.James K Baxter
We cannot solve all the problems of this world. But what we can do, we must.
Deviating into root causes and revolution tends to get in the way of being charitable. Which is our duty: which is our duty.
And those who call charity racism, and mock those who understand this theme of caring for the weak which has been within Christendom from the beginning will be doubly damned, for they will not even allow the uncaring to think, or have shame, or change, or find mercy.