by Akua Lezli Hope
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| Original photo at Esquire |
Stop talking about him. Stop giving him play.
Turn your back. Make him disappear
off our feeds, our tvs, allay our fears
Let the diseased thing fall in the forest, unhear
Let the one hand not connect
with either cheek or other hand no sound
Don't believe and thus disempower this winged,
wicked thing so that it unappears—
don't cheer it back to flickering life.
Don’t untie its knots or reinterpret its betrayals
Don’t crown its crap with gravitas
Toss holy water on it. Make it melt away.
Stop all attention allowing it to last
Best left alone, shunned, rebuked, undone,
its name I will not say
Akua Lezli Hope is a creator and wisdom seeker using sound, words, fiber, glass, metal, & wire to create poems, patterns, stories, music, sculpture, & peace. A paraplegic, third-generation New Yorker, her honors include the NEA, two NYFAs, NYSCA, SFPA & Rhysling & Pushcart Prize nominations.