Inspired by The 1619 Project

Fellow "white" people...

Fellow "white" people, please hear me out
We've been bamboozled, let there be no doubt

When divided, we're conquered, too
There's a sickness worse than any pandemic flu

A tool used to suppress wages and pollute our common air
A tool used to keep us all from affordable health care

Convinced of who's deserving and who's not
Willing to die so long as "they" don't get what's sought

Told we're better and given just enough more
Sold a bill of goods to keep us poor

Blinded to injustice, corruption and lies
Numb to hypocrisy and all those caged cries

To save your family, you'd cross any arbitrary border
But we aren't in those shoes, so we talk of law and order

Police brutality is disproportionate we know
We were told he's dead but there stands Jim Crow

The disease can be cured but only if we unite
It infects systems and structures; we're needed in this fight

There are no people of "white" descent
That's made up capital that we've done spent

Du Bois referred to our "psychological wage"
We're long overdue to redirect white rage

Genocide and enslavement formed the foundation
Upon lacerated backs was built a nation

Trillions worth of unpaid labor
Reparations wouldn't be some favor

No, simply put, a massive debt is owed
A construct, a lie and hatred was sowed

Dehumanization to justify families torn apart
And that, dear friends, was just the start

Rape, mutilation and the taking of life
The 13th did not end the strife

Convict leasing, lynchings, a phony drug war
New Deal for some, others shown the door

Housing denied with a simple red line
My ancestors given access, no question what's mine

Access to colleges another omission
No fuss, though, over legacy admission

I trust you can see the wealth gap was not fated
It was methodically, viciously, intentionally created

The same can be said of the ghetto and reservation
Don't be fooled by media misrepresentation

Hannity and Carlson, they're not your friend
They profit off keeping us bitter til the end

The media asks candidates if Trump is a racist (read with a laugh)
They ask if water is wet and pretend he's not also a rapist

We've been exploited and used
To ensure we overlook the abused

Cast off the chains, let's be free
Not us vs. them but an ethic of we

Equality sounds nice but equity's the goal
Find your humanity and play a vital role

9/8/2019