What’s so threatening about melanin?
it doesn’t enter the mindset you’ve settled in ‘cos your livelihood ain’t been meddled with
nobody is forced to fight to insist on your right to exist
with voice
with law
with fist
nobody is denying your right to breathe,
to walk
to jog
to birdwatch
you’re cool, you get to switch off
I get to confront the pain of another
brother slain
bright as day
camera footage
identity badges and names
you get uniformed privilege
we don’t get the benefit of doubt ‘cos of the broadness
of our mouths
of the sun in our skin
of the power within
they’re determined to extinguish greatness
no equal platform, they use apparatus
systems and scaffolding
I am exhausted by the excuses, excesses, the perpetrators being excused on account of feeling threatened when beckoned
he was unarmed
you were unharmed
Us,
burying black bodies
fathers
brothers
husbands
sons
how many shed blood?
I’m out of line for being enraged?
you are not consciously engaged
you don’t get to tell me how to feel just because you feel nothing
each execution is a reminder they think we are nothing
we are unsafe
we are confronted with hate
we will not accept this fate
we call you out on silence
we point the finger at compliance
we shine light on the blood on your hands
we must take a stand
it is not enough to disapprove
so colleague
so ally
so friend
if your heart is open then so is my hand
they want to break our spirit
but nothing touches it
as drained as we feel
we would choose to be Us over and over
we would choose to be Us over and over
Syeshia writes poetry, short stories and plays with an interest in experimental writing and influences drawn from theatre and music. Themes include identity politics, mental health and contemporary living. In addition to literature, she has a particular interest in multidisciplinary arts and immersive performance.