(courtesy:https://www.thestoryoftexas.com/discover/artifacts/slave-collar-with-bells)
by Hassen Lorgat
first they came for the journalists,
and I did not speak up,
then they came for the MPs,
and I did not speak up,
when they came for me—
a mere mortal who loved books and friendships—
no one was around for me.
…perhaps it is too late?
now the gumboots kick down our door,
unions are being smashed,
for the hungry, austerity becomes our daily bread.
…the immigrants are being hounded.
women are still unsafe—at home, and in the streets—
until no dissenting voice remains free:
jailed, silenced one way or another,
through the law or its violent flaw.
Perhaps it is too late?
But tell me, comrade…
How may we come together?
…to embrace our future.