lies.

you say you see me
but you aren’t even looking
I walk past with a hoodie, you see thug
I pull out my wallet, you see gun
I do anything, you see blood

lies.

you say you hear me
but you aren’t even near
empty voices crying out for justice
falling onto curbs of concrete jungle
you come closer at the sound of destruction

lies.

you say you feel me
but you aren’t me
I have born your burdens for centuries
I have built your country from scratch
yet I still cannot exist

lies.

I exist
– simply as a fragment of my own imagination
I’m dead
– that’s a reality you’d sooner face then me

I approach, you cower
I walk with dignity and grace
because you have no power
I am the oppressor
you are the victim
of lies.