People sleep
In the dark
In the cold
outside
People sleep
In the dark
Bundled up and warm
inside
People live
To survive
People live
To thrive
People die
Because of the color of their skin
Because protection under the law is not guaranteed to them
Because people in power do not represent them,
do not celebrate them,
do not see them
People die
Because of old age
Because they lived a full life of protections and privilege
Because that is what happens at the end of life for them, not in the middle
People shout
Our Lives Matter
Black Lives Matter
I Can’t Breathe
As they take to the streets to demand justice
To demand equality
To demand safety and opportunity
People shout
Obscenities laced with racism
A product of privilege and ignorance
An embarrassment to society that is all too common
People cry
In the wake of the death of their loved ones
In the wake of the state of the country
In the wake of what this country was built on
And what it tries so desperately to forget and deny and suppress
People cry
When they learn the truth
When they try to understand
When they acknowledge their part
People unite
With the understanding that not everyone can understand
But that change is necessary
And acknowledgement is vital
That reparations start with a collective apology
A collective confession
A collective frame shift
A call to action
A Revolution
Led by the people
The people who have needed the world to affirm
that Their Lives Matter
Faking It Made 