"Police brutality alleged at Sydney Gay Mardi Gras: Outcry over video showing man being thrown to the ground during arrest." --The Guardian, March 6, 2013
"They just slammed his head. There's blood all over the ground."
I had an epiphany the day before Ash Wednesday:
I drew my tourist card and earned $30m for the state
of New South Wales celebrating equal marriage rights
a thousand police officers proudly parading on my side
for this one day we’ll forfeit the right to see young revellers
manhandled and slammed to the ground, punched in the head
‘cause the cops told us so; during this time of penitence, and
for as long as you love me, we will not film the violence
the blood curdled cries: what have I done wrong?
For as long as we can breathe we’ll talk about
that sound of his head hitting the floor, Delta’s buzz
at the gay parade, the confessions still to be made.
Martha Landman is an Australian poet whose creativity feeds off the news.