Equally American
Black lives never said white lives didn't matter -
Or that blue lives should be gone after;
It's about equality under law-
Which they aren't getting.
When you are American-
You expect to be treated as human.
If you tell me all lives matter in response;
I can tell you are not listening.
Fair policing isn't black , brown or white.
It's a fundamental right.
And if you see its extension to others - as a threat to you ;
Well then , my friend
They've got you.
With the biggest lie they could've told.
Fairness isn't a finite resource ;
And freedom isn't either.
My gain is not your loss.
My pain is for you too.
All lives matter is at best a bogus rebuttal -
Lacking all substance.
it supposes a revision that supports division.
And distracts one from logical thinking.
You told me it was a fear;
And I hear it too -
With questions like why does it have to be a racial issue?
The reason is as simple as the facts.
You can't escape the skin you're in -
So if you are black
You know not to turn your back.
You know to put your hands up.
You know how to comply -
But still hope not to die.
While if you're white, you can recite
A long list of American rights -
Bitch and mumble
About your uniquely personal plight.
Or drunkenly stumble from your car one night -
But you know you'll be all right.
You won't die reaching for a valid ID.
You won't get shot because you moved 'aggressively' toward car keys.
Maybe they didn't have to brand it
Black Lives Matter:
But they did and it got your attention.
The heart of the Matter
Lives in people;
Not just their pigment.
They ask for equality,
in protest -
Another American right.
And are shouted down
With an empty slogan.
It's not just that this misses the point -
It feeds the fear you admit you feel.
But where is that rooted if not in the real?
You think its a question of vanishing values -
But equality never changed one bit.
Our country's composition did.
So now it's appearance -
Isn't what you grew up with
When you were a kid.
America is still the home of the brave; The land of the free.
It's more a tradition
Of your comfortable position
That's shifted -
Why is it
That you've never had to show bravery -
Just to enjoy freedom?
If you think speaking your mind
While peddling falsehood
Is somehow equivalent
Here's your white hood.
And no, I'm not calling you racist -
Just willfully blind to real injustice.
It isn't because you're American
It's born in the system.
A system where police are citizens too -
Authority is not just a badge and gun.
When equality is promised (under protection)
It comes with responsibility
That goes beyond mere sensibility.
This is why we govern with facts.
Not just our feelings.
All lives matter ignores our history
Because that's comfortable too
Comfortable for you:
If change is scary
If you associate right -
Or the color white with authority
If you've never been a minority
If you only see words -
And never heard or read the stories.
Black lives are often blue lives bruised.
They strive and dream here
They feel the heat here
They walk the beat here
You think your on a balance beam here?
Because your opinion may offend
And you'll feel wronged if we fight again?
If I raise my voice
Because again
You are not listening.
What if it was your skin?
You would fight like hell
I know you would -
Because unlike some
Your heart is still good.
That's why I'll tell you proudly
That black lives matter.
Their grievance is for equal justice
Not just a cause for white discomfort.
But if this poem hurts your feelings
That's okay too.
No man who ever spoke truth
said change was easy.
It never was
Us v.s. Them
They are us
We are them;
Equally
American.