by E. F. Schraeder
A shadow operation manages
to paint itself minuscule.
It solves problems
by shrinking beneath doorways,
into bedrooms
to stop lovers from wedding;
into doctor offices
to peek beneath the paper sheets,
and block reproductive services.
Small enough to fit into wires,
listen to protestors plan permitted
events in gated public spaces.
Small enough to build walls
between countries
and boost border brutality.
Small enough to fit into dictionaries,
rename activists as terrorists,
liberals as radicals, radicals as socialists.
Small enough to shrink corporate dollars
into unlimited campaign funnels
in a public court
and small enough to fit
neatly, like a concealed carry
law, in a small space,
offering a perfect fit
for closed
minds.
E.F. Schraeder's work has appeared in Haz Mat Review, Blue Collar Review, Hiram Poetry Review, and elsewhere. She is currently working on a new manuscript of poems.
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