with apologies to P.B. Shelley
A cruel, malicious tyrant-governor—
Fitzgeralds, multiplying, nod and bow,
A blight of creeping weeds sent to deter
On Walker’s say-so—cut, deny, allow—
Unionicidal despots bludgeon all
Negotiation, file contempt and fine
The fab fourteen, block access, kill the call
For civil discourse—bloated, lawless, blind
With power and deceit, arrest the drums,
Suppress the chants that echo through the state,
Clear granite halls ‘til righteousness succumbs,
And twist democracy to sponsor hate.
Still, high above, Wisconsin lifts her hand,
Defiant. Forward: hope, her grim command.
Leslie Schmeisser is a Wisconsin native living in Minnesota. She is a high school English teacher and holds a B.A. in English from Northwestern University and a M.Ed. from the University of Minnesota.
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