(c) all rights reserved · dverse · haiku · justice · poetry

#Haikai Challenge #141: Justice and dVerse OLN — Blue Death

msjadeli
protests continue following george floyd's death
image link

 

Minneapolis:
land of white snow and dark hearts –
one more chalked outline.

*

Means of movement for
vehicular homicide –
a reason to kill.

*

Persons of color,
your mandatory choices:
death, cage, tom, drugs, star.

*

With every badge
comes training, fraternity –
license to kill.

*

Blue eyes fear brown eyes
cops’ optic nerves triggered –
so many ways to kill.

*

Given few choices
each ends in suffering pain —
blue death on our throats.

*

If we were monsters
like you, you’d be dead –
stop killing us.

 

(the last 2 are written from the perspective of color as best I’m able to)

Frank J. Tassone is the host of Haikai Challenge.  Frank says:
This week, write the #haikai poem of your choice (haiku, senryu, haibun, tanka, haiga, renga, etc.) about justice, particularly justice for Black people that continually endure disproportionate violence from the police.

Grace is today’s host for dVerse’ Open Link Night.

Published by msjadeli

mother, gardener, retired government worker, observer, reader, learner, bicyclist, woman who runs with the wolves, lover of music!

43 thoughts on “#Haikai Challenge #141: Justice and dVerse OLN — Blue Death”

  7. Very heartfelt, Ms. Jade. I’ve barely been able to function this past week. I hope these protests are different from all the rest that have come and gone, come and gone, come and gone, come and gone, come and gone over and over and over and now things actually do change. 🙂

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  9. Pingback: #Haikai Challenge #142 (6/7/20): firefly, lightning bug (hotaru) #haiku #senryu #haibun #tanka #haiga #renga – Frank J. Tassone

  13. Blue on Black, indeed. But my pessimistic gnome on my left shoulder says that if Trump stays in office, there are even darker days ahead. Your haiku pack a lot of punch, power, and truth.

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  14. It pains me when all good cops are painted with the evil brush of the few. There must be some way the police departments can weed out those who wear the uniform as an excuse to bully and intimidate.

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    1. Beverly they can if they choose to. Having a 4 year degree for all cops would be a good start. Psychological profiling as part of the hiring process, and annual “burnout screening” should be mandatory. Sweeping red flag behaviors under the rug when they happen needs to end. What is probably most difficult is the fraternal order of police bonding. These guys depend on each other for their very lives. If one rats another out, there is a perceived violation of trust.

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      1. That “I don’t think I can take anymore” feeling is really dominant right now. I had it for much of the week. I read on a spiritual site that the thought is just a few steps away from breaking through into the meditative void spaces. That idea put me on track and I listened to a lot of guided meditations until I felt clearer and more centred in myself. Right now doing that is a daily practice – kind of like taking a shower in light every day. Good luck. I hope you feel clearer soon.

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