Bystanders and their complicity
Some men and their women
And the children they raise
Politicians and legislators and
Those who oppress us.
They would steal,
do steal
from mothers and fathers, along with the right to our tears.
The fruits of our labor,
joy of our children,
wealth from our lands,
and the beauty of nature.
They capture our womanhood,
our essence.
Crushing our stories,
the promise of our words,
zest from our music,
and beauty of our color.
It is a heritage trampled.
For I have passed as white
although I am Mestiza, Hispanic and European,
descended in part from indigenous slaves in what has become the Southwest of these United States.
I fought for my country and yet,
I still find myself fighting the fight of the oppressed.
I am not a bystander.
Writer Bio:
Sharon is a USMC Veteran. She writes with the Nebraska Warrior Writers and the Writers Guild Initiative out of NYC. She has published a short story and several poems, as well as being published in the NE Warrior Writers anthology in 2021.
