When The World Stops Spinning: Poetry & Short Stories

Finished with American

I will never be able to understand you

American.

You tell me to forgive the past,

The breast feeding that went into feeding your children,

But...

My daughter believes she is simply the coil used in your large factories,

My daughter believes she will one day be blessed to have 9 wounds in her chest,

She will count each one out loud for Charleston,

As she rushes her last prayer,

Rather than going off to college with a PhD in Criminal Justice,

Because there was never justice for Trayvon,

Or was it Eric,

Or was it Freddie,

Or was it Walter...

My son believes he will be your dancing monkey,

He shall shake, tumble, and dribble for you

American.

He will make you proud to call him American,

I'm sorry,

African-American.

My son believes he must carry the hatred of being darker,

My son believes his worth is equivalent to a bullet proof vest,

But I know,

I know American,

NOTHING will protect him from you.

American,

You tell us to forget about the genocide committed by Hitler,

You tell us to forget about the lynching committed by you,

But we celebrate the anniversary of 9/11,

And the Boston Bombing,

With the radio stations blasting last phone calls from loving families,

But we cannot show the images of our brothers hanging from trees,

Or state how many of our sisters were raped,

Because we are suppose to be strong,

We are suppose to be happy,

Right, American?

American,

Tell me to leave this land,

Tell me to return to the great beautiful Africa,

Tell me who told you WE WANTED TO BE HERE!

Tell me where in your right mind that God said,

"The Minorities must be tamed,

They must be shackled by violence,

Or they will ruin your perfect complexion,"

American,

If we must return home,

Return to Europe,

Return this stolen land to the Natives,

Tell them you are sorry for taking what was rightfully theirs.

American,

Minorities are who built your America,

You are American,

But we are the United States,

American,

I will never understand you,

Your ability to close in on yourself,

Your ability to discriminate those who helped build your empire,

So,

American,

I am finished with trying to see the world through your eyes,

American,

Learn to adjust the focus on the lens,

Understand that the blurred trees in the background are

People,

Our people,

Understand that the bright flash is your wake up call,

Understand that the stars you see for a few seconds are tears,

Tears that have fallen...

From trying to protect The American Dream...

American,

We are disappointed,

We are mad,

But we refuse to stoop to your level of disrespect,

And we refuse to stay silent.

#BLM