Beaten Down

Beaten down for centuries Splattered in newsprint for all to see It has been that way ever since they came from Africa on hollowed ships Enslaved, raped, hanged, broken Traded for sins unspoken Successful towns burned to the ground Wiped from the maps never to be found Protestors marched as sons and daughters were shot Police bullets took lives without a mere thought The unarmed men and women trying to survive in a country who ruled they had no right to life Battered and beaten, black lives shattered Skin color, if Black leads to lives in tatter Equal Pay? Equal rights? Do Black lives really matter? Republicans gerrymandering to silence their rights Statesmen cloaked scheming through dark days and nights The front of their neck rests the white man’s knee trying to gasp out the words “save democracy” Ignoring their foes they showed up in droves Standing in line No concept of time Wind howls, rain pour the right to vote has never been yours