THAT THEY WOULD

by Mel Brake


If they can call him a nigga they would
If they could get away with it they would
If they could insult and offend him his father and all black people
They would

If they could scandalize his reputation they would
If they could call his preacher a racist they would
If they could call his wife a militant they would
If they could drag America back to reconstruction
They would

If they could reverse Brown vs The Board of Education they would
If they could sell drugs to his kids in the name of freedom fighters they would
If they could prostitute his mother to turn against him they would
If they could hang him near the tallest chapel of a thousand points of light
They would

If they could denied they are not haters they would
If they could disseminate misinformation about him on the airwaves they would
If they could hire a white woman who does not know that black Russian is not a cocktail
They would

If they could be the party that allegedly freed black people who were born free
They would
If they could say in all earnest that America is the home of the brave and the free
They would not

If they would not panhandle to America’s business class but work for the working class
Who voted them in office
They would

If they could not believed in their red white and blue Christian hearts that they are not
God’s anointed and chosen people
They would

If they could call him a nigga they would
So instead they call him
A socialist
They call him
A fascist
They could not call him
A racist
but they call him a cheater
That they would

Mel Brake is a Philadelphia-based poet and founder of MPW (Mel's Poetry Works).
_________________________________________