Racism Repeats Itself

An angry white mob
A black boy on the run
We’ve seen this way before
Trayvon was killed by a gun

A white woman threatens to call the police
On a black man walking alone
We’ve see this way before
Breonna was killed in her home

Two white men murder
A black man jogging through his neighborhood
We’ve this way before
Ahmaud was killed in cold blood

A white policeman arrests
A black woman for a yell
We’ve seen this way before
Sandra was found dead in her cell

A white policeman chokes
A black with his knee
We’ve seen this way before
George couldn’t breathe

These deaths were no accident
Their crime is simply living
Black in America
These crimes not worth forgiving

There is a saying that goes
“forgive and forget”
But staying silent
Is the only thing I will regret

We take to the streets shouting
“No justice, no peace” indignantly
We’ve been here before
So how will this end differently?

Some say change is slow
Movements and people must gather
We’ve been waiting since 1619
For Black Live to Matter.

Ling-Se Chesnakas is an educator at Boston Arts Academy.