Poem for Radical Milwaukee #Free Palestine, 5/21
We meet at unbearable times:
Of murder; of the violence
Wrought by empire, by xenophobia & white supremacy, by anti-Semitism, by
Transphobia.
We meet because we can’t abide these moments alone.
Together we are Arab & Latinx; Black &
Indigenous, Asian American & white; We are
Muslim, Christian, Jewish,
Secular, pagan & witches; we are
Queer & straight &
Non-binary; we are
Born here or born there.
We stand together in solidarity, in grief. We say:
No more. We say:
Not in our names. We say:
This ends here and now,
No matter what.
& the work doesn’t end there,
No. Right here, right now, we begin to imagine
What the $146 billion in military aid
Given to Israel by the United States since 1948 might have bought instead, what
Splendid dwellings it might have built for people who
Never had to leave home, never were
Refugees.
We dream of what the $1.6 billion budgeted for policing in our city
In 2021 alone might do for us, what
Parks & schools & housing for all, what free art classes, clinics,
Restaurants we could have, what
Our city would be like if our young people didn’t
Breathe in fear of being murdered by police.
Right here, right now, we open
A collective savings account for
What is rightfully ours; the world waiting only
For our courage and love
To build it.
#Free Palestine