Representation Is Crap, Part Ii
...Even when I look to the past
the implications echo strong,
I used to like Frederick Douglas,
now I realize that I was wrong.
Old Fred was much darker than me,
so I cannot empathize with him,
5o think that he was a hero…
me, a pale man—oh, such a sin!
If the smartest say we can only
feel safe with those who look like us,
than maybe I must reconsider
the whole of the northern state’s cause.
After all, didn’t the greybacks
fight for people who looked like me?
If my heroes must reflect my face
then hooray Confederacy!
Now growing up I once believed
that a person is what’s inside,
that the world’s a tough, brutal place,
never gives out an easy ride.
I was taught to cheer for people
who pushed on despite all of this,
who sought to do right, be moral,
when they found themselves deep in the sh-t,
that such things spoke to a person,
more than pigment ever could,
regardless of sex, age, background,
we instinctively cheered for the good.
But C.R.T. says otherwise,
and professors claim they have ‘facts,’
Is it possible they all are wrong?
And that representation is crap?
Yes. Yes it is.
Copyright © David Welch | Year Posted 2021
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