Innocent Participants

. for public domain Children swing from big oak trees, from lengths of rope in Summer's breeze, flying free to catch the water, rich man's, poor man's, son or daughter. Apples too, and blossoms cherry, swing upon their branches merry, throughout our country's history, without a shame or mystery. And yet without one eye flinching, ropes and trees still used for lynching our own country's women and men, insensible to brethren. Trees have no truck with things we do, outside the burning, stripping, hew. Their innocence unstained by sin, while ours blackened again and again.