They shut off the power
in my place today
and I wonder
what’s the point
of resetting the clock
on my microwave.
I think the internet
should have a sign that reads:
It’s been _____ days since
the last innocent life
has been murdered
in cold blood
standing in the street,
lying on the ground,
sitting in a jail cell,
strapped in a seatbelt,
pressed under the knee
of a cop begging mercy,
begging for mother,
begging spare my children,
holding hands up
high in the air, reaching
for the same God
we are all supposed to be under,
right hand crossing hearts,
pledging allegiance
to the United
States of America
still afraid of its own blackness.
First published in Resist and Shout (Lucid Moose Lit).