Desperately
Trying to fit in,
Appeasing their
Oppressors.
Young women
Parading around in
Outlandish, tacky
Versions of the
Garb of their
Conquerors.
Spirit broken
Generationally,
A sham display of
Civic pride,
Gaudy cartoon,
Misguided
Aspirations.
Keep them out.
Our nation isn’t what
It used to be.
Didn’t have to
Mingle with
Unfamiliar people.
Look, talk, believe the same.
Diversity what?
Didn’t have to
Bother with complex
Issues like indigence,
Unfairness, compassion,
Sharing resources.
One planet, no borders what?
Keep that dishwasher out.
Destroying the
Very fabric of our
Toxic society.
Just moved to
A new community
Dramatically different from
The one we knew.
Welcomed with open arms,
Invited into people’s homes,
Warm hospitality,
Friendly conversations.
Within a few weeks,
Grew uncomfortable,
Didn’t agree with
Certain people’s lifestyle.
Too different,
Too big city,
Too lenient,
Let our feelings
Be known.
Ostracized for
Standing up for what we
Believe in,
Our values,
Our inflexible certitude.
Fragile,
Requiring constant care,
Vigilance,
Reverence for the common good.
How easily it is
Torn apart by
Indifference, greed, myopia.
Taken for granted
Until it’s not there any more,
People in disbelief,
Wondering what happened.
No one there.
No one there.
Where’d they go?
I don’t know.
I’ll wait a moment.
I’ll wait a lifetime.
I’ll wait no longer.
I’ll wait perpetually.
Close your mind and go to sleep.
Don’t let pesky knowledge interfere with
Hard-fought obstinacy and practiced
Fact resistance. Cherish the slumber of
Those who sleep awake.
Carefully orchestrated,
Purposefully planned and
Coordinated derogation of
Community organizing.
Chuckling in their suites,
Shaking their heads,
How easy to instigate,
Perpetuate the movement.
Concerted effort
Masquerading as populism,
Passionate followers
Marching in unison.
Perhaps it’s the
Repetition of ideas,
Labeled as common sense,
Rehashed and regurgitated
Way too many times,
Losing their original sting,
The memory of stern faces
Telling them what to believe,
The inability to bounce back
From the continuous onslaught,
The required rationalization
Of reprehensible positions,
That leads them to conclude
And say out loud,
Without a second thought,
That some people merit
Unconditional derision,
Exclusion, punishment.
A slimy, diseased presence
Insinuating itself into daily
Discourse, spreading spores
Infecting the conversation,
Blurring the lines of veracity.
Small, petty, diseased creatures
Bloviating about the latest
Manufactured outrage,
Anti-truth serum pulsating
Through collapsing veins.
Feeding more coal into the fire,
Stoking the flames of discord,
Prurient power fantasies,
Conscience gagged, extinguished,
Kneeling at the altar of money.
