Poetry competition CLOSED 10th July 2020 10:18pm
WINNER
Anonymous
Anonymous
RUNNER-UP:
AspergerPoet56
EVE of DESTRUCTION
Poetry Contest Description
Submit a poem that best describes how you feel about the civil unrest that has swept across the world in the wake of George Floyd's murder. world in the wake of George
Living in St. Paul, the twin city of Minneapolis, I’ve been living in the middle of the George Floyd protests and riots. Since his death, between the sound of gunfire and sirens, along the smell of buildings burning down, I’ve had many sleepless nights. Barry McGuire’s "Eve of Destruction" protest song recorded in mid-1964 keeps playing over in my mind. I’ve come to wonder if humanity is on the brink of destruction. A YouTube link is provided below for those of you who may not be familiar with the song. Please submit a poem that describes your view of the civil unrest that has swept across the world in the wake of Mr. Floyd’s death. As fellow poets, what I seek are intellectual works rather than visceral reactions. Of course, please be respectful of all contributions.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmTDWPd7RgU
Living only a block away from the Minnesota Governor’s Mansion, I couldn’t help but wonder if we are on the Eve of Destruction when I witnessed a heavily armed military vehicle drive past my home. This is one of the more disturbing events in my life. Needless to add, the video of Mr. Floyd’s murder is shocking. So, I post this competition with a great sincerity.
There's Them
It's not always us
it's also about them
lingeringly pushing
themselves into denial
Hatred, a glare a look a smirk
scares me white
she whispers venom
smiling like a Madonna
I sit behind pearly curtains
occasionally peeping out
to watch harshness unfold
judgementialism rearing up
colours don't matter
hatred is coloured white
love is coloured red
black makes me look slimmer
I'm far from madding crowds
living as lonely as a cloud
catching occasional smiles
from Occidental skies
eggs on nests
kittens on flower beds
man living breathing
all life matters.
it's also about them
lingeringly pushing
themselves into denial
Hatred, a glare a look a smirk
scares me white
she whispers venom
smiling like a Madonna
I sit behind pearly curtains
occasionally peeping out
to watch harshness unfold
judgementialism rearing up
colours don't matter
hatred is coloured white
love is coloured red
black makes me look slimmer
I'm far from madding crowds
living as lonely as a cloud
catching occasional smiles
from Occidental skies
eggs on nests
kittens on flower beds
man living breathing
all life matters.
Written by Grace
(IDryad)
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Anonymous
Related submission no longer exists.
The Charmers of Hupomeno
Mankind and his ambition
Might have thought
To take slowly from the pile
But he seems to heave and throw
Eager to watch it burn
Eyeing the cinder
The ember his eye
Puff and pride swelling his chest
What destruction
And brought tempest
The storm placed
And mankind grins
Believing it echoed a rain dance
Barking snake oil
To crowds huddled
Shaking hands
To chuck the bottle
They lick their lips of its placebo
And stoke the fire
With sticks of ivory
Boned charcoal
And remnants of nature
And its source
The tapping of singed fingers
Plays a tune
To impromptu a soft shoe
Buffaloes time step
And the cake walk shows white teeth
Bared and dinged
And shuf shuf shuffles off
Mankind and his cane
To beat the rock
With the bones of holy ancestry
They drink
But cannot further the tribe
Dancing does nothing for distance
Endurance withers
In the heat furnaced and fueled
Mankind procreated
Whip in hand and behind her like a dog
He has raised a son
And named him Meribah
The Great Entertainer
Watch him twirl the torches
Gasp as they burn
The soul at siege
Will rush the plank
Will caress the sky from falling
Will scald his flesh
To prevent the stage on fire
But dismantle it piece by piece
And find a fortress in his stronghold
The temple of man
Made of skin
And three rings announce a master of ceremonies
He is loathe to crack the lions
But had intended them lambs
Might have thought
To take slowly from the pile
But he seems to heave and throw
Eager to watch it burn
Eyeing the cinder
The ember his eye
Puff and pride swelling his chest
What destruction
And brought tempest
The storm placed
And mankind grins
Believing it echoed a rain dance
Barking snake oil
To crowds huddled
Shaking hands
To chuck the bottle
They lick their lips of its placebo
And stoke the fire
With sticks of ivory
Boned charcoal
And remnants of nature
And its source
The tapping of singed fingers
Plays a tune
To impromptu a soft shoe
Buffaloes time step
And the cake walk shows white teeth
Bared and dinged
And shuf shuf shuffles off
Mankind and his cane
To beat the rock
With the bones of holy ancestry
They drink
But cannot further the tribe
Dancing does nothing for distance
Endurance withers
In the heat furnaced and fueled
Mankind procreated
Whip in hand and behind her like a dog
He has raised a son
And named him Meribah
The Great Entertainer
Watch him twirl the torches
Gasp as they burn
The soul at siege
Will rush the plank
Will caress the sky from falling
Will scald his flesh
To prevent the stage on fire
But dismantle it piece by piece
And find a fortress in his stronghold
The temple of man
Made of skin
And three rings announce a master of ceremonies
He is loathe to crack the lions
But had intended them lambs
Written by Calamityofgin
Go To Page
Related submission no longer exists.
Fire Wife
You already said goodnight/ i love you
but he mentioned its busy
be safe
no answer
Its late
youre wide awake
restless
worried
scared
He hasent responded yet
You know hes tired
they are all tired
theyve been busy
They all need sleep
so you in turn feel guilty for being tired
you sneak a peak at your high school age kids
because come on, seeing them safe helps
you look in the mirror
you look tired
you look worried
you lay back down
its only been 14.3 minutes
you arent asleep
you text him again
you turn on the news
you see chaos
what the fuck
you google said area heart pumping
you arent sure if hes there
youre knees are sore from praying
please God let him be ok
please God let him sleep
please God let them all be safe
please God let him return home safe
to the family that deeply loves him
Hes a good man
the best
you notice its so late
you triple check the house alarm
you think hear the kids
they ask if dads ok
you try to hide your fear and say yes
hes fine go back to bed
you look at the clock
normal people are sleeping right now
our lives are not normal
you have get up for work soon
you know youll wear your famous smile
hiding the pain of sleepless night(s)
masking the multitude of thoughts that you have
when hes at work and cant answer
your phone blips
you run from the kitchen with a bag of chips in your hand
to your bedroom cuz thats where you left your phone
you hit your pinky toe
fuck that hurt
its only an ad
fuck that ad
you mental note to never buy from them again
you go back to bed
cussing
you close your eyes and turn off the tv
then you hear it
that sound
is it really the garage door opening?
no way hes home already
you start to cry
you stop
you listen
wow its that time already!
HES HOME!
you hide your tears
you run down the hall before he hits the house door
you thank God once again
you hug and kiss each other
hes tired
he goes to bed
you are getting ready for work
he checks the kids before bed
you go and tell him again you love him and that youll see him later
he hugs you tight says the same and then you leave
hes home
hes home
press play
repeat for the next day he leaves for work
the life of this fire wife
but he mentioned its busy
be safe
no answer
Its late
youre wide awake
restless
worried
scared
He hasent responded yet
You know hes tired
they are all tired
theyve been busy
They all need sleep
so you in turn feel guilty for being tired
you sneak a peak at your high school age kids
because come on, seeing them safe helps
you look in the mirror
you look tired
you look worried
you lay back down
its only been 14.3 minutes
you arent asleep
you text him again
you turn on the news
you see chaos
what the fuck
you google said area heart pumping
you arent sure if hes there
youre knees are sore from praying
please God let him be ok
please God let him sleep
please God let them all be safe
please God let him return home safe
to the family that deeply loves him
Hes a good man
the best
you notice its so late
you triple check the house alarm
you think hear the kids
they ask if dads ok
you try to hide your fear and say yes
hes fine go back to bed
you look at the clock
normal people are sleeping right now
our lives are not normal
you have get up for work soon
you know youll wear your famous smile
hiding the pain of sleepless night(s)
masking the multitude of thoughts that you have
when hes at work and cant answer
your phone blips
you run from the kitchen with a bag of chips in your hand
to your bedroom cuz thats where you left your phone
you hit your pinky toe
fuck that hurt
its only an ad
fuck that ad
you mental note to never buy from them again
you go back to bed
cussing
you close your eyes and turn off the tv
then you hear it
that sound
is it really the garage door opening?
no way hes home already
you start to cry
you stop
you listen
wow its that time already!
HES HOME!
you hide your tears
you run down the hall before he hits the house door
you thank God once again
you hug and kiss each other
hes tired
he goes to bed
you are getting ready for work
he checks the kids before bed
you go and tell him again you love him and that youll see him later
he hugs you tight says the same and then you leave
hes home
hes home
press play
repeat for the next day he leaves for work
the life of this fire wife
Written by mysteriouslady
Go To Page
Submit a poem that best describes how you feel about the civil unrest that has swept across the world in the wake of George Floyd's murder. world in the wake of George
This is how I feel....all. the. time.
What matters
in this moment
is not a fire someone set
engulfing an innocent
youth down its throat
none of us are saints;
we've all made mistakes—
hoping a second. . .
third, or fourth chance
makes an appearance
before we become artifacts.
What matters now—
in this moment
is that George Floyd
and all before him
were robbed of that hope
through no fault of their own—
enough is enough;
let justice be served
#Blacklivesmatter
is not a fire someone set
engulfing an innocent
youth down its throat
none of us are saints;
we've all made mistakes—
hoping a second. . .
third, or fourth chance
makes an appearance
before we become artifacts.
What matters now—
in this moment
is that George Floyd
and all before him
were robbed of that hope
through no fault of their own—
enough is enough;
let justice be served
#Blacklivesmatter
Written by Ahavati
(Tams)
Go To Page
Related submission no longer exists.
Anonymous
<< post removed >>
Anonymous
<< post removed >>
Let BLM Break Pork Together (catch hypocrites)
Let BLM Break Pork Together (catch hypocrites)
Back in the day
Sunday Privilege knew
How to use mere words
to steer war
No where could
a Muslim or Jew
hide their faith
at pork feasts
So let hypocrite
invaders
with bigotry
espionage
...of privilege
say humbly
with fist raised
before all
Their wives
children
parents
friends
“I am black”
Back in the day
Sunday Privilege knew
How to use mere words
to steer war
No where could
a Muslim or Jew
hide their faith
at pork feasts
So let hypocrite
invaders
with bigotry
espionage
...of privilege
say humbly
with fist raised
before all
Their wives
children
parents
friends
“I am black”
Written by EdibleWords
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America On Its Knees?
His true intention
Was never prevention
Leathal force used
Human right to live abused
Death seen blow by blow
America you reap what you sow
Let institutions breed hatred
Then nothing is sacred
Anger turns up the heat
Protestors take to the streets
Protect and serves is pure sarcasm
The badge and uniform is white fascism
Racial tensions hit new heights
Land of the free takes another bite
Not so black and white more rich and poor
Forget guns a loaded credit card is the cure
The thin blue line shatters
Cause all life matters
When the national guard starts firing
Is the constitution finally tiring
Just watch it unfold on television
The government vs people collision
Spare a prayer spare a dime
For America is on its knees this time
Was never prevention
Leathal force used
Human right to live abused
Death seen blow by blow
America you reap what you sow
Let institutions breed hatred
Then nothing is sacred
Anger turns up the heat
Protestors take to the streets
Protect and serves is pure sarcasm
The badge and uniform is white fascism
Racial tensions hit new heights
Land of the free takes another bite
Not so black and white more rich and poor
Forget guns a loaded credit card is the cure
The thin blue line shatters
Cause all life matters
When the national guard starts firing
Is the constitution finally tiring
Just watch it unfold on television
The government vs people collision
Spare a prayer spare a dime
For America is on its knees this time
Written by AspergerPoet56
Go To Page
Anonymous
Related submission no longer exists.
We Can't Breathe
What the fuck is this shit?
How the hell is this still happening nowadays?
To protect and to serve is a joke
When they choke and take a man’s life away
Is there no humanity?
How much hatred do they have in their hearts?
They’re so fucking blind and bigoted
That they can kill a man in front of cameras!
Hate hides behind flawed law
With intent to harm and kill then think it’s justified
It’s inhumane and unfeeling
When there is no regard for another human being
I can’t help but feel angry
Furious and outraged at this broken system
It’s appalling that they can do this
Without any sign of regret or remorse
How many more?
How many times?
Where and where?
Who will be next?
Hey world have you heard?
They took yet another man’s dignity
They took his breath
They took his life
They gave him death for no reason
They committed murder
And now the masses will be his voice
We can’t breathe
Our blood is boiling and it’s spreading like wildfire
How the hell is this still happening nowadays?
To protect and to serve is a joke
When they choke and take a man’s life away
Is there no humanity?
How much hatred do they have in their hearts?
They’re so fucking blind and bigoted
That they can kill a man in front of cameras!
Hate hides behind flawed law
With intent to harm and kill then think it’s justified
It’s inhumane and unfeeling
When there is no regard for another human being
I can’t help but feel angry
Furious and outraged at this broken system
It’s appalling that they can do this
Without any sign of regret or remorse
How many more?
How many times?
Where and where?
Who will be next?
Hey world have you heard?
They took yet another man’s dignity
They took his breath
They took his life
They gave him death for no reason
They committed murder
And now the masses will be his voice
We can’t breathe
Our blood is boiling and it’s spreading like wildfire
Written by wallyroo92
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