After The Parade

After the

Parade,

Petition,

& Protest,

Catastrophes

Evil, tragic,

Idiotic &

Infuriating,

Continue to exist.

The weight of all this anguish

Threatens to push you into the ground.

The whisper of apathy is alluring.

She promises it’s better this way.

Keep your head down,

Push the pain out of sight.

The price of ignorance is cheap.

Keep busy.

Do your work.

Do not question the system.

Do not think

About how the world built before us

Was designed to maintain a social hierarchy

Where the priviledged benefit from

A legacy of oppression.

Do not examine the life you were born into.

Do not ask yourself,

What traumas have I inherited?

What privileges do I have?

How have I been a bystander?

Do you feel a tickle in your chest?

That uneasy twist of shame in your heart?

That sensation is so uncomfortable,

You would do anything to avoid it.

Keep busy.

Do your work.

Do not question the system.

That feeling will slip away,

And nothing has to change.

Unless…

How does a poem go from

An intellectual exercise of the observer

To a tool for paradigm change?

This poet challenges you;

Get up off the ground.

Ignore the whisper of apathy.

Lift your head up.

Acknowledge and embrace the pain.

The price of ignorance is too high.

Engage stillness.

Find meaningful work.

Interrogate the system.

Do not forget

The world built before us

Was designed to maintain a social hierarchy

Where the priviledged benefit from

A legacy of oppression.

Examine the life you were born into.

Ask yourself,

What superpowers have I inherited?

What access do I have?

How can I be an upstander?

Do you feel a tickle in your chest?

A rush of pride in your heart?

Engage stillness.

Find meaningful work.

Interrogate the system.

That feeling plants roots

When you are the change.

Think of all the lives lost.

All the names that don’t make it to the papers.

Think of the children who

Don’t have enough mentors.

Think of the parents who attend

Funerals instead of dance recitals.

Think of the indigenous women and girls

Stolen from their homes:

Trafficked, raped, or killed.

Think of the queer youth in unsafe homes

mastering the art of self-hatred.

Think of the young black driver

Terrified he might never see his family again

When he’s pulled over.

Think of someone you love who is struggling.

What is sparked in your core?

What energy is seeking release?

Set it free.

Scream.

Vote.

Cry.

Protest.

Laugh.

Write.

Advocate.

Sing.

Legislate.

Celebrate.

After the

Parade,

Petition,

& Protest,

Catastrophes

Evil, tragic,

Idiotic &

Infuriating,

Continue to exist.

And so do we.