Echo

Recently voices started calling out to me
Echoes from the past that were fighting for equality
They ask “Will there ever be unity,
Or will there always be hatred toward the colored community?”
I wish that there was an answer that I could give
There’s so much going on in the time that we currently live
The hearts of many with so much angst and unrest
And there are those who don't get why we fill the need to protest
It started with slavery, that ended, but then came Jim Crow
Separate but equal is what was said but it seems it was all for show
The disease of racism never saw a cure or a remedy
It’s just a shame that it took the year 2020’s vision for people to start to open their eyes and see.
We were told to forget about it, ball it up and lock the door
But as time flies by that elephant, grows more impossible to ignore
They say that they love MLK, but shit they killed him
And anyone who labels themself a leader is classified a terrorist or ends up a victim
We’ve grown accustomed to buying t-shirts or digging up a plot
When we just want to be able to walk without the fear if we’re about to die or not
This lack of chemistry
Has brought about nothing but misery
And I’m trying to solve the mystery
On how we made it to this point in history
My people are the historically disenfranchised
Often dehumanized
Rarely sympathized
Unjustly criminalized
Vastly criticized
Badly brutalized
By a nationalized system
That refuses empathize
This is for the little boy in Mississippi, way back in 1955
That if he never would've whistled he’d may still be alive (Emmett Till)
In 2010, a girl who was just 7
Wrong place + Wrong time = An early trip to heaven (Aiyanna Jones)
To the young woman who was just there lying in her bed
Just to get shot 8 times, then pronounced dead (Breonna Taylor)
To the young man who took a jog around the block
For the last sound he’ll ever hear to be the shotgun’s cock (Ahmaud Arbery)
For the Queens Sandra Bland, Latasha Harlins, and Rekia Boyd
And the Kings Tamir Rice, Trayvon Martin and George Floyd
I could go on and on, but I hope you can see the picture I’m painting
This all is exhausting, sometimes I feel I’m close to fainting
My head’s in the clouds
So many have decided to remain silent till now
It goes without saying that I’m Black and I'm proud
Too bad that if you're Black then that means no breathing allowed….
We don’t want to start a war, we just want a little give a fuck
That's why I take my fist and ball it then throw it up
But it’s still messed up and hard keeping a sound mind-frame
When the fact still remains
That my story could end the same
A young black man
“Fits the description”
Wearing a hoodie around town
“He look suspicious”
I saw him throwing up signs
“A gang affiliate”
He won't look me in the eye
“He must be dealin’”
Let me grab my gun
“A split-second decision”
I think he is armed
I pull the trigger
Aimed with precision
I am the victim
My life is missing
Claims I was violent
Claims self defense
Not guilty verdict?!?!
How does that make sense?
Someone can take my life,
They ignore the witness
They get acquitted
The names just keep adding up
I CAN'T FORGIVE IT!