CONNECTED

by Fred Schraff


Worldwide consumers’
voracious appetites
for cell phones, laptops
and MP3 players
fuel Africa’s darkest side
where minerals containing
tungsten, tin and tantalum
are mined at gunpoint
by terrorized workers
conveyed by smugglers
to far east processors
for anonymous rebirth
as electronics purchased
in countries by people
who don’t want to know.


Fred Schraff lives in Cleveland, Ohio, where he was born. He holds BS and MS degrees in electrical engineering. He currently works as a design engineer in an electronic company and writes poetry for relaxation.
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