Be-Side

This poem was originally published at Truthout.org.

Citizen’s United – by hakim bellamy

If we kidnapped 
THEIR children 
They would find us

If we put guns 
In the hands of those young 
They would tag them 
“Child soldiers”

But here 
We prefer to leave them 
Clinically depressed 
And decorate them in marine

There is a name 
For people who will take 
The very bread 
Off of our dinner table 
And put it in their pocket

They are toast 
Like champagne flutes 
Are the new silvers spoon

Like what they will be 
When the revolutions 
And the riots 
Catch up with them

Tomorrow morning 
When humanity 
Has the munchies 
And eats presidential candidates 
For breakfast

When their war chest 
Can fill the holes 
In our country’s 
Debt, deficit & addiction

But. 
They’d rather 
Raise money 
To argue about it 
Than raise sleeves 
To fix it

Politicians are NOT people too, Mitt 
LOOK AT YOU!

And they’re not Jesus either, Barrack 
If you remember 
He ran the moneychangers out of the temple 
Not into his cabinet

If you remember 
He was Guantanamo’s blueprint

He was no popularity contestant 
He had no friend in the Pharaoh, Pharisees or FED 
He told them 
Where they could shove 
Their opinion poll 
And they hung him from it

Back in the day 
When Romans used to lynch Jews 
With perpendicular sticks

And you remember 
They make sure you do

Cause from the dome of the United States Capitol 
To the Pantheon bars of the White House 
Boy, 
They gon’ make sure that you know 
Where Black people are supposed to live

Corinthian columns 
At the halls of Congress 
With no reparations 
Or apologies

Depicting corn cobs 
To symbolize 
Our stolen bounty

Tobacco leaves 
To symbolize 
Our stolen “Help”

Our stolen wealth

If you remember 
He did not run for office 
He ran for his life

What ever happened? 
To public servants 
Instead of self-serving

When did it stop 
Being about “We the People”

And start 
Being about winning

When did the Catholic’s 
Social doctrine 
And the athiest’s 
Social justice 
Both translate to 
“Go to Hell”?

Why do we wait for them? 
For education 
And elections

And then wonder 
Wh we won’t teach us 
To elect ourselves

What if 
Every lawn’s 
Campaign sign 
Read “Peace”

What if 
On November 6th 
We’d agree

To agree

What if 
I were to say 
I’ll only believe 
In a government 
That believes 
In me

What if the citizens 
Were really united 
And each one of us 
Decided

That I’d vote for me.

© Hakim Bellamy September 17th, 2012

For Rasheed and for Occupy