poem
Volume 35, Number 1

Ellen Eglin (before 1849–after 1890)

My clothes-wringer wasn’t
fancy, and nor was I.
I sold the design for $18.
 
I knew white ladies wouldn’t buy
a Black woman’s invention,
not in 1888, not in America.
 
How does it work? Rollers
wring out the clothes. All you
have to do is turn a crank.
 
The wringer wasn’t even my
best idea. The next one’s
a secret. It could be anything.
You could be using it right now.


—Jessy Randall