by Tina Williams
“Fuck you, fuck you"
he said to the poet
and nurse
as sure as he said it
to the autoworker
shouting “pedophile protector!”
Every day,
he middle fingers
the command
to clear the streets
one way
or another
but the living
come back.
They arm
themselves
with poster board
and their children’s
future.
They return
on the shoulders
of the dead.
They dress
for the cold.
he said to the poet
and nurse
as sure as he said it
to the autoworker
shouting “pedophile protector!”
Every day,
he middle fingers
the command
to clear the streets
one way
or another
but the living
come back.
They arm
themselves
with poster board
and their children’s
future.
They return
on the shoulders
of the dead.
They dress
for the cold.
Tina Williams lives in Round Rock, Texas. She wants to be part of the solution.
