Silence.
Oppressive. Weighted. Tinged with fear.
Horrified eyes watch each other
Because overlapping the silence of their classroom
Of their utter horror
Is the sound of gunshots
Of screaming, of lives ending.
Detached from the situation I watch videos
Their terrified snapchats
And all I can think is
Not that long ago this could've been me.
Or someone I love. Someone I know.
Parkland. Not far from Flagler.
Anger and entitlement so easily built.
Access so easily given.
Lives so easily ended.
How many times has this happened?
How many more times will it happen?
How much longer does this go on?
How much more til something gives?
This generation chooses to speak.
This generation chooses to fight.
And they are punished.
Punished for their fear.
Punished for their audacity to demand
Those in charge do their jobs
Punished for their audacity to demand
Those in charge ensure their safety.
Why does your right to own a weapon
That ends lives more important than
Our right to live freely and safely
Our right to learn in peace without fear for our lives?
How dare you demand we deal with it ourselves
How dare you demand we don't inconvenience your lives?
When our brothers and sisters
Our friends and classmates
Our teachers and role models
Lost theirs time and time again?
And those who walked away alive
Lost their sanity
Lost pieces of themselves?
No. To you brave souls I say this
Speak. Speak loud and protest.
Where my school punished for ours
Let no one punish you for yours.
Do not let them trivialize you.
I once heard a beautiful quote
"Raise your words, not your voice.
It is rain that makes the flowers grow.
Not thunder."
I wish this was true all of the time.
But sometimes it is thunder that shakes foundations.
It is thunder that shakes cores.
It is thunder that knocks down people and makes them quake.
Makes them know fear.
Make them know. Make them hear.
You are not to be silenced.
Raise your voice. Speak Up.
It is your thunder that will make the change.
So shake the world.
YOU ARE READING
Injustice
PoetryI can no longer contain my feelings. With the Eric Garner situation fresh on my mind I've made a decision. I will start expressing my feelings about these situations in this book. If you enjoy it great if you don't oh well but this is more or less f...
