I Can’t Believe

I can’t believe…

That people don’t return calls and think nothing of it
And that we hate injustice but force others to love it

I can’t believe…

That people hurt each other and don’t apologize
And that we ignore history and can never grow wise

I can’t believe…

That people joke about political corruption
But that we deem true criticism as a disruption

I can’t believe…

That people are afraid to admit their own mistakes
And that we vilify scholars and glorify the fakes

I can’t believe…

That people must still petition for equality
And that we place a priority on frivolity

I can’t believe…

That people have vetoed and undermined liberty
And that we sanction sheer recklessness and stupidity

I can’t believe…

That people steal what belongs to others and then gloat
And that we shove democracy right down our neighbor’s throat

I can’t believe…

That people build delusions based on long-lost glories
And that we rewrite the past using falsified stories

I can’t believe…

That people stand up for animals, their tusks and hides
But that we sit back while men are slaughtered in genocide

I can’t believe…

That people too often will succumb to temptation
And that God doesn’t intervene to save His creation

Raji (Roger) Abuzalaf is a Christian Palestinian (Haifa) refugee raised in Houston, now a long-term Honolulu resident and a U.S. citizen. He is a guitarist, singer, composer, and poet. Raji participates in local progressive/activist causes, at present co-producing pro-Palestine filmfare for Oahu’s main cable provider’s public-access TV network. Read other articles by Raji.