How long Will This Go On?

How long will this go on?

 

The times are dark, and the mood is dreary.

I scream, frustrated, no one will hear me.

The world has not changed, and I grow weary.

 

I ache with sorrow, another one dead.

I face tomorrow, some face it with dread;

Another Black Man won’t make it to bed.

 

Hatred’s exhausting, the stress and strain;

Each day is costing us and causing pain

From being mistreated viewed with disdain.

 

How long will this go on?

When justice sometimes gets it wrong,

We want people to belong;

Hopeful, optimistic, and strong.

 

If you complain, it is alleged abuse.

If it is not witnessed, it’s an excuse.

A person wails and wonders, what’s the use.

 

Believers approach God with petitions;

The prayers to alleviate suspicions;

To solve the world’s chaotic condition.

 

We’re mindful that periodically,

We must surrender, so God can be,

A force that will work methodically.

 

Someone is dead regardless of intent.

It may be called reckless endangerment;

Be it intentional or an accident.

 

How long will this go on?

When justice sometimes gets it wrong,

Truth must be the believer’s song;

Hopeful, optimistic, and strong.

 

The guilty ones will be prosecuted,

The video evidence disputed,

But values must be reconstituted.

 

May we abandon acts of division;

Inflammatory words of derision.

May we love and let it drive decisions.

 

Eradicate hatred as a disease,

Address injustice and inequities,

And stop seeing neighbors as enemies.

 

Copyright © 2020 Orlando Ceaser