Black Lives

Oh Sweet Honey,

I strive to return to you,

But I’m in a world where I cannot hide

Stuck between my humanity and my punishment,

They spit n’ do away with us,

As the bus hauls us away, chains n’ all,

Clinging in unison- in despair

Being black becomes my sentence

Oh Sweet Honey,

My face betrays my innocence , while

the blackness in my skin screams guilt,

As the truth in my voice is mistaken,

Mistaken with the cries of a wounded animal,

masked in pain, and losing will

Oh Honey,

I seem to be out of options,

As the cell becomes my birthright- and the jail my home,

I scream "Justice!", while they shout “Silence!"

They pick up arms and point in my direction,

As if my cry for help is a threat!

As if my voice should be feared…

It might be difficult for us- me and you to escape this fate.

But Honey,

Oh Sweet Honey,

Has our congregation not noticed our absence?

Do they not question all of our empty seats?

I neva’ thought I’ll be alone,

As we sang “We Can’t Be Moved”,

But it seems that I was wrong,

as the solitude in myself continuously grows.

Sweet Honey, Please explain to me

Why I can’t find my way out of this predetermined path to servitude?

I’ve been property continuously-

I’ve been dispensable historically

The security embedded in my identity,

Stripped off it’s rights and dignity.

half-man, half-bastard

Of the country who has raised,

and abandoned me.

And You,

Sweet Freedom,

are the only vision I see.