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What is the main message of Chief Laforme's poem 'I Love this Land'?


Today one of the biggest problems in our society is racism, it’s like corruption which never stops spreading and hurts everyone in its path. Racism is a problem now, however it was an even bigger problem one hundred years ago. The poem created by Chief Laforme expresses that a man who did the same as him still receives more wealth, or any at all, than a man or woman of non British heritage. This problem of equality is represented when Chief Laforme says “So you were given land property, while I waited and waited,” (Chief Laforme, I Love This Land), this cements the fact that these people of other cultural backgrounds, which fought for the same cause and put their live on the line just like everyone else, received so much less. “waited and waited” is a very important phrase because it reinforces the fact that these people are still waiting to receive what they deserve. Although he might be saddened and disappointed by the fact that he has not received what he was promised and earned, he still shows an incredible amount of humility by saying “I am not envious of you brother, I believe you deserve even more than you received” (Chief Laforme). In the quote “while I waited and waited,” (Chief Laforme) he uses repetition which adds a large amount of emphasis on the final waiting which makes it seem as if he's still waiting. In the entire fourth stanza Chief Laforme uses enjambment giving the stanza the feel as if he's listing all his pains and anger towards “you”. Chief Laforme could have also been trying to express that the war hadn’t solved anything or that maybe the wrong team won because they were such horrible people that were unwilling to give people what they deserved because of the colour of their skin. To this day indigenous people still face many problems, but one hundred years ago it was even worse, they weren't even described as human beings. Most indigenous weren't even given a choice and were told that they had to fight for a country which they were barely allowed to live in.

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