Fifteen year old Ruth Bizuneh, a sophomore at a local charter school, was one of about 200 individuals who gathered at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Library in San Jose, CA, at one of four synchronized protests organized by High School and college students building a generation of individuals passionately fighting for equal rights for minorities. Her spoken word poem brought me to tears as as she stood before a silent crowd pleading from her heart the pain felt by generations of people of color whose lives were made less than by those in the white majority. In a few moments, she wove together the pain evoked by racial and social injustice with that of love, tolerance and... innocence.
Ruth Bizuneh, Students4Ferguson activist and poet for racial justice, future author and civil rights lawyer.
Innocence
Its hard
He was just playing around, being him
I understand you know the bond we had
I got memories in my head and it will never go
Good times
If he don’t get no justice we wont get no peace
If he don’t get no justice we do not get no peace
Too long its been too long
of no justice
hundreds of years of pain
years of tribulations
today marks a silver lining
Black lives matter
our lives matter
regardless of color
religion
culture
regardless of pigment
our lives matter
and i know
i know
this world is far from perfect
this nation is not swisher sweet
but i also know we were built on law and order
and this shit right here
this shit right here
aint nothing but no social justice
and i know my life aint perfect
and i know i stumble
but does that mean someone needs to take my life
but does that mean someone needs to take my life
my mistakes will not define me
man i swear im innocent
i thought we were better than that America
I thought we were better than that America
about 2 years ago michael brown said that trayvon martin could of been him and it is
there are too much traryvon martins
michael browns
too much oscar grants
eric garners
too much
so whos next?
so we can prepare ourselves
who is next
how many more so i know i could look for something
so today we stand here before you
Michael Brown
Oscar Grant
Eric Garner
Sean Bell
Ron Davis
Trayvon Martin
Kendrick Johnson
Jon Ferrel
we stand here before you in solidarity to tell you
we feel you
we hear you
we will will never forget you
your lives were stolen
and
i feel nothing but hurt
nothing but hurt
i do not want skin color to be a death sentence for anybody
regardless if you're brown black or white
we live under a government where social justice is unheard of
arent you for the people?
arent you for the people?
so please tell me what is going on around the world?
tell me why theres millions out there crying fighting for justice
tell me why trillions are in poverty
tell me why theres overcrowded schools
tell me why we have people, too many living pay check after pay check
i thought you were for the people
and i know this right here
us right here will never fade
as long as we stand together
educate each other
serve one another
Michael Brown and all the rest please rest in paradise
Following the event, I sought her out to tell her how moved I was by her poem and wondered if she would answer some questions related to her performance and activism. I'm including parts of her correspondence here because I can't bring myself to summarize her words that so profoundly permeate through her youth and wisdom beyond her years. I'm hopeful too, that for all who are younger than her, their burden to protect equality will have diminished as we continue to vividly remind one another that the violence of our past, is the violence of our time, unless...
On Inspiration:
I feel as if poetry is another way to really grab the audience, regardless if you are conveying anger, hurt, or excitement. Regardless of the feeling, if you choose the right words that will really hit the audience and have them thinking, and have them really amped up to make change, because at the end of the day, change will not occur, if we don't force change, especially in social justice. So all I want is for people to understand what's going on, to really wake up from this sleep America is in, and really begin to change their mindsets of nothing will happen or nothing will change, because ultimately that's what the government wants us to think and we need need to break out of that.
Wish for humanity:
My wish for humanity is we start seeing America for what America is, to not put false labels, idolize America as the "land of the free". We still definitely need to be grateful, but I feel we NEED to open our eyes and see that we are all human, regardless of how beautifully pigmented your skin is to the fairest skin, we are all human, so we need to begin treating each other like that. We need to break that habit of cops abusing their power, and a prosecutor to actually do their job. We need to be able to achieve full equality for the sake of our country. It's going to be a hard and long battle, but I feel what is going on around the world today is not going to stop, we're going to continue standing strong together, against the oppressors. Something big is formulating.
White Silence = Consent
My brother matters
My sister matters
I matter
Dream for social justice:
We're fighting though our hearts are aching. All I know Is I will keep writing for the ones that want me to perform, I have a deep passion for this and it will never just die down. What we all need to do is just support one another, don't be afraid to speak out, don't be afraid to protect your rights, and as long as we stand together from today and on, then this dream we all have of social justice and equality for everyone will one day be achieved.
We Need Liberty and Justice for All
A movement:
It could of been my brother, it could of been you, so we need to really open our eyes, even if it hurts. We need to be able to be a part of this movement, because it could of been anyone. We need to put a stop to police brutality, and police need to be held responsible for their actions. Please get involved in any way possible, even if it's just tweeting about the issue, you're bringing awareness. We need to better America, because this is our country!
Assist from an English teacher on hopefulness and a few words to Daily Kos readers:
...the thought of knowing Eric Garner had 6 kids and a wife to go home to every night, the thought of him having a family, and now they have to hear the murderer that murdered him is free, the murderer of her husband is free, because of his occupation and skin color, kills me inside. What if this whole issue of social injustice and inequality is bigger than us? What if we really can't fight through it, and she said wait, what you are saying right now is what the government wants us to think, you loosing hope Is what the government wants, because it's one less battle for them. We need to remember all our brothers and sister that have lost their life over this issue. We need to remember MLK, Malcom, Cornell West, we need to remember all the young kids that have died, the adults that have died. We need to remember everyone around the world who have protested, who have formed their voice, are behind us, and it's definitely not going to be a smooth road to social justice, we need to remember who we are, and what we stand for. We need to be able to sit with ourselves and say this is what I will fight for, because we don't want our sons to go through it, our grandsons, nephews. We need to remember who we are, and never forget it. We cannot loose hope, especially in a time like this, because right now our hurt is still raw, and if we loose hope, then all the killings were for nothing. So remember, Its not just you, so much are standing the same ground as we are of all different colors, ages, and genders. So keep fighting, never give up! Love.
|
|
|
|
Kitchen Table Kibitzing is a community series for those who wish to share part of the evening around a virtual kitchen table with kossacks who are caring and supportive of one another. So bring your stories, jokes, photos, funny pics, music, and interesting videos, as well as links—including quotations—to diaries, news stories, and books that you think this community would appreciate. Readers may notice that most who post diaries and comments in this series already know one another to some degree, but newcomers should not feel excluded. We welcome guests at our kitchen table, and hope to make some new friends as well.
|
|