Original Poem: When I say "Stop!"
- Arlene Worsley
- Apr 30, 2021
- 1 min read
Updated: Sep 12, 2021
When you look at me,
what do you see? When I speak clear English,
what do you hear?
Do you see me as your equal?
Or do you subject me to your bias?
To my face and at a distance,
you call me the coronavirus.
You see me by the color of my skin,
a color shades darker than yours.
You judge me because
of the shape of my eyes.
And yet you dare say,
I am not a racist, I am wise.
At work,
you see me as a threat.
You hinder my success
and punish me instead.
You yell at me, humiliate me, bully me
until I concede.
I am not worthy is what
you want me to believe.
With the pandemic,
your prejudice has come full force.
Behind a mask, you dare
spill your hate without remorse.
You blame all Asians for what
the pandemic has cost you.
When it has cost everyone so much too.
Xenophobia
Violence
Hate crimes
Death
You tried to silence me.
You tried to make me small.
You tried to make me concede.
You tried to make me fall.
I say "Stop!"
Enough is enough.
I refuse to be conditioned to accept your -ism.
You must respect my voice, my activism.
I deserve to be seen and heard.
I deserve a safe place to live and work.
The next time you approach me
with hate in your veins,
I will bluntly tell you,
"Stop. What do you have to gain?"
You gain nothing at all.
Original poem by Arlene Worsley
Blog Thumbnail Photo Credit: Genaro Molina (Los Angeles Times)
© 2021 Arlene Worsley, cyberandsapphire.com
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