Psychotic Trauma...

 

Image source: Cherwell

© April 14, 2021, the Griot Poet

 

Sunday,

My wife and I took a “sanity ride.”

To High Point, North Carolina,

Cruised around,

Checked out the sights:

A baseball game and family BBQ in progress,

 

On the way back,

We were followed,

By High Point police,

For several miles,

Running my plates,

As I drove defensively,

Five miles below the posted speed limit,

 

Lights on, he pulled us over,

I dug out my license, insurance,

The masked officer told me my tags were expired,

Something that you might let slip during a pandemic,

He told me to get it inspected,

And present it to the magistrate,

I had no priors like,

Duante Wright.

This happened,

On the same Sunday,

Duante was slain,

By a training officer,

Yelling three times, “taser,”

 

HELP ME UNDERSTAND:

Tasers are often produced in bright colors,

Or, with neon accents,

To distinguish them from guns,

 

The Glock is on their dominant side,

The taser on the opposite.

A gun weighs more than a typical taser,

Guns have a safety trigger,

Tasers do not.

 

Duante and I are black men,

Except, one of us is alive; one of us isn’t.

 

Fuck this!

 

The Texas toll road can take a picture of your plates,

And MAIL you a ticket if you’re in violation,

PLEASE tell me:

Why do we have nervous,

Armed,

High school dropouts,

Pulling over motorists with weapons?

 

The Kenosha, Wisconson shooter, seventeen,

Not even a resident of the state he murdered two people in,

Got bottled water, and "attaboys" from the local police,

Underage, carrying a long arm weapon openly in the streets,

A white man shot up Mother Emanuel after attending church with his victims,

Then he got a cheeseburger for his grumbling tummy and disposition.

 

A white man shot up a movie theater,

In Aurora, Colorado,

The second movie in the Batman trilogy,

Died his hair in homage to Heath Ledger’s Joker,

Walking out completely without a mark on him,

 

Timothy McVeigh, and Terry Nichols,

Blew up the Alfred P. Murrough Building,

In Oklahoma,

Killing 168 persons, thirty children,

In a nursery,

The US government started looking for Arabs,

Before they found GI Joe with the Kung Fu grip,

He and his psychotic sidekick were,

Taken in without incident,

Stood trial breathing,

Though they did get a measure of justice.

 

White women call 911,

On African Americans enjoying fellowship,

At a BBQ,

Selling water, or lemonade,

On a train in Napa Valley to a winery,

Bird watching in a New York City park,

 

A Facebook meme encapsulates:

 

“When the color of your skin is seen as a weapon, you will never be seen as unarmed.”

 

This is state-sponsored terrorism,

Amounting to public lynchings,

A steampunk techno metal version

Of the original,

With the same initiatives:

Keep the untouchables in a state of panic, fear, and dread.

 

I quote the following, copied and pasted from Facebook:

I need to run some errands this morning. To ensure I arrive alive, I won’t take public transit (Oscar Grant).

 

I removed all air fresheners from the vehicle, double-checked my registration status (Daunte Wright), and ensured my license plates were visible (Army Lt. Caron Nazario).

 

I will be careful to follow all traffic rules and announce I have a CHL (Philando Castille), signal every turn (Sandra Bland), keep the radio volume low (Jordan Davis), and won’t stop at a fast-food chain for a meal (Rayshard Brooks).

 

I’m too afraid to pray (Rev. Clementa C. Pickney), so I hope the car won’t break down (Corey Jones).

 

When you run errands today, be sure not to dance (Elijah McClain), stop to play in a park (Tamir Rice), patronize the local convenience store for snacks (Trayvon Martin), or walk around the neighborhood (Michael Brown).

 

Once home, don’t stand in your backyard (Stephon Clark), eat ice cream on the couch in your apartment (Botham Jean), or play any video games (Atatiana Jefferson).

 

I guess I’ll watch a movie around 7:30 pm; I won’t leave the house to go to Walmart (John Crawford) or the gym (Tshyrand Oates) or on a jog (Ahmaud Arbery).

 

I won’t even walk to see the birds (Christian Cooper).

 

I’ll [just] sit and remember what a blessing it is to breathe (George Floyd), and I definitely won’t go to sleep in my own bed (Breonna Taylor).