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“dear jesse helms,” a poem by Lucille Clifton

March 15th, 2006

dear jesse helms

by Lucille Clifton

*

something is happening.
something obscene.

in the night sky
the stars are bursting

into flame. thousands
and thousand of lights

are pouring down onto
the children of allah,

and jesse,

the smart bombs do not recognize
the babies. something

is happening obscene.

they are shrouding words so that
families cannot find them.

civilian deaths have become
collateral damage, bullets

are anti-personnel. jesse,
the fear is anti-personnel.

jesse, the hate is anti-personnel.
jesse, the war is anti-personnel,

and something awful is happening.
something obscene.

____________________

From THE BOOK OF LIGHT, by Lucille Clifton.

Used by permission of Copper Canyon Press.

Tags: civil rights history, lucille clifton, poetry

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