There was no riot in Oakland last night
Because a police officer was found guilty
The boards on my local stores will stay up
Because we have unfinished business
Now people are claiming that they are going to start
What should have been finished long before we were born
The boards will stay up
And a black man will stay dead
When I heard the words of the verdict
I came close to tears
I grieve for the man who will not benefit
From the small victory that carries his name
He will not take that lover back into his arms
No child’s eyes will look at him with adoration
A friend of mine was murdered by our country
Long ago his name was known by everyone
He too never got to grow old
Frozen in time as a hero
The story gets retold
Because it is mostly forgotten
Pilgrims leave flowers at his grave
As do I, in solitude
Every day three of us are shot by police
How many are bombed?
Our soldiers and our cops are not changing much
Three generations have learned something from them
Fear
No comments:
Post a Comment