Invisible
EXCUSE ME!!!!
Do you not see me
standing before you?
Do you not realize that I,
a black woman had a life
that mattered too?
The black woman appears to be
the best kept secret in death
being wiped from the face of the earth
where many won’t remember
our names or know of our existence
When black girls vanish
the only way anyone knows is
through the newsfeed of social media
when white girls vanish
the news media makes sure
the world is notified
while paying no attention
to the clues of plasma
footsteps we leave behind
Many ignore the crimson bleed
of life that seeped
from the opening of the
slashed throat racism made
leaving us to become
the mutilated corpse lying
on the ground society
relentlessly steps over
We’re viewed as a nothing gender
Melanated race of women
often deemed as bothersome or angry
The bellows of our spirits
are discombobulated
as we quickly become
shadows of unrecognized Queens
we are being killed in alarming masses
and all you can say is we must of had it coming
Black women are the givers of the
black lives that are supposed to matter
still we are looked upon
as the doormat placed at
the bottom of the totem pole
you seem to enjoy wiping your feet on
When it comes to black men,
you are seen and heard,
be it good bad or indifferent
but how high must a black woman jump
in order to be seen
how loud must a black woman shout
in order to be heard
Better yet
how many black women need to
be annihilated before our lives
are mourned and celebrated
Brothers, are you willing to
stand up to protect us, even if it's
your fellow brother we need
to be protected from
Our life and death must not be in vain
So what will you do in order change it
Remember,
black women marched for you
don’t you think it's time you march for us?
We are forced into invisibility
like the remnants of
Sandra Bland’s disparity
that was swept under the rug
and lifeless body of Kanika Jenkins
they shoved into a refrigerated coffin
Nia Wilson’s memory they washed away
along with her blood that stained the platform
of a Bay Area Transit Station
or Breonna Taylor and Atatiana Jefferson's peace
they fatally laid to rest in the confines
of their own home
I will forever remember their names...will you??
Copyright © Lala Deville | Year Posted 2020
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