Blessed Are You, Or Maybe Cursed, Revised

Blessed are you who protest against injustice

For great is your reward in heaven,

But here on earth, great is your mistreatment.

Blessed are you who march for causes that are righteous

For great is your reward in heaven,

But here on the earth, great is the derision with which people treat you.

Blessed are you, Black farmers of this land, who till the soil you love

For great is your reward in heaven

But here on the earth, great is the time that you will wait for your loans. 

Blessed are you, Black farmers of this land, whose blood is on the land

For great is your reward in heaven

But here on the earth, great is your suffering as you wait for justice. 

Blessed are you, whose skin is dark, who labor sun up to sun down

For great is your reward in heaven,

But here on the earth, great is your grief as your friends pass to the ancestors.

Blessed are you who resist programs and policies that malign the least of these

For great is your reward in heaven,

But here on the earth, you will be viewed as anti-American.

Blessed are you who kneel on behalf of people who are treated with brutality

For great is your reward in heaven,

But here on the earth, you will be maligned by folks who think it is about the flag.

Blessed are you who write or speak up for the good of the poor

For great is your reward in heaven,

But here on the earth you will be viewed as ungrateful for the opportunities you have had.

Blessed are you who do not settle for laws that enhance the rich and marginalize the poor

For great is your reward in heaven,

But here on the earth, the privileged will view you askance.

Blessed are you who stir the pot for things that are righteous and good and true

For great is your reward in heaven,

But here on the earth expect pushback after pushback after pushback.

Blessed are you who dream of a better world

For great is your reward in heaven,

But here on the earth you know sleepless nights.

Blessed are you who recognize that privilege has been yours to wear

For great is your reward in heaven,

But here on the earth anticipate ridicule for your beliefs and ideas.

Blessed are you who recognize that the world can be a better place,

Who do not wait for heaven to bring about change,

Who protest, march, resist, kneel, write, speak up, stir the pot, recognize, and other things

Because you could not live with yourself otherwise.

No, you could not live with yourself otherwise.

And in doing so, you find other advocates and friends, and you all make the world a better place.