The Black Man's Burden - Poetry Study Guide (LitCharts)

The poet begins by sarcastically suggesting that the U.S. go ahead and add to the racism and oppression that Black people already face, an issue that is actually most apparent within the
country itself rather than abroad. Indeed, since this problem is still so alive right here in the U.S., the speaker wonders why the country would bother turning its attention to suffering nations like Cuba or faraway places like Hawaii. The poet urges U.S. leaders to stop military forces abroad, which are accustomed to bullying and oppressing disenfranchised people who are only capable of defending themselves using basic weapons that are no match for the U.S.'s heavy artillery.

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