Black and Dead, White and Alive

Haunted by the things you see
Things not to be unseen
Brutal and ugly mean and deadly
No matter where you’ve been.

Driving his car

Not going too far
Pulled over for a missing light
Bullets in his body that very night.

39 seconds was all it took

An innocent man’s life
Played by what book
Child’s screams into the night.

White cops

Out on patrol
Black driver friend child
The sad tale unfolds.

White cops

Out on patrol
White driver friend and child
A different tale would be told.

The words the words the words

The blast the blast the blasts
Blood is all around
The child screams
The mother wails
These lives won’t last.
 
Living while black
Playing while black
Driving while black
Farming while black
Pulled over while black
Someone is scared of the black the black man.

They all mean the same

That one thing is for sure
Black lives don’t matter
You can see it in the book.

Their mamas weep

Their friends rage
Black lives don’t matter
Who will start turning the page.

Whiteness reigns

In all of its shapes and spaces
How can I be hopeful
When I look into their faces.

Jury has spoken

Police versus the man
When the man is black
Just part of the plan.

Where is hope

Is it lying in the grass
When will it arrive
Will it ever come to pass.

Our babies what will they see

Years down the road
People treated right
Truth grace love carryin’ a righteous load.