Rage rises

tongues of flame

sear bones, sinew and muscle

wrapped in brown skin

limbs writhe against batons

lips swell with beatings

eyes bleed, jaw cracks

wrapped in brown skin

shackled. starved. raped.

gouged. hunted. choked.

lynched. poked. injected.

stripped. drowned. expelled.

trampled. airbrushed. kneed.

medicated. gassed. gunned

down

down

down

years of white knuckles and heels

kick up dust clouds

in cotton fields, ghettos, tower blocks

brown skin burns,

turns flesh to dust dust dust

fills nostrils, clogs windpipes

Until

I can’t breathe

By: Revd Dr Catherine Okoronkwo