Mesopotamia. Babylon. The Tigris and Euphrates, by Arundhati Roy

[Griff]

If from the heights, you watch the sea,
O little darky, slave among slaves,
You’ll see, dreamlike, many ships approach,
And a flag that billows o’er the waves.

Little black face, wait and hope,
For the hour nears, beautiful Abyssinian,
Once we have reached you and stand at your side,
A new law you’ll have, and a brand-new king.

We are merely the slaves of love,
And our watchwords are Duty and Freedom!
Our Pillars of Righteousness we shall avenge,
Which falling, have freed you from serfdom.

Little black face, petite Abyssinian,
We’ll bring you, free at last, to Rome;
Then you too shall wear our homeland’s garb,
You too shall be kissed by our golden sun.

Little black face, you’ll Roman be,
And our proud flag your own will be.
And proudly together we’ll march and sing,
Before the Duce, before the King!

Fascist Italy's conquest of Ethiopia in 1935-36