I can’t stop thinking about Germany,
the Jews with their suitcases and little ones
herded off at the point of guns
to death camps and the ovens…
Spain and Chile,
Lorca executed, Victor Jara, beloved musician,
wrists stomped and broken before he was murdered
in the blood drenched national stadium…
Argentina,
mothers of the disappeared
raise photos of their sons and daughters,
bang pots with rage and tears year after year…
Alarms! Blare discordant Shostakovich horns,
wallop the timpani, the kettle drums,
cue the theramin for when the monster leaves its den─
something wicked this way comes…again.
Hide the children,
the vulnerable, the infirm,
build shelters and tunnels, post sentinels all around─
something terrible this way comes.
Board up the entrances of buildings,
barricade the ‘hoods and barrios
that will surely be target number one─
something deadly this way comes.
Mobilize fighters: the fearless, the nothing-to-lose, the young.
leaders with science and heart to step to the fore.
Wrench an audacious better world from the ruins,
end the empire’s egregious crimes─
no more
fascism, no more
ecocide, genocide, no
more wars─
for all time
to come.