For Alex Pretti, Nurse Executed by ICE Agents
They say “domestic terrorist.”
We say “citizen.”
They say “violent radical.”
We say “peaceful protestor.”
They say “he brandished a gun.”
We say “he had a phone.”
They say “absolute immunity.”
We say “first amendment.”
At the end of each sentence a life is at stake. It’s how
words form in the mouth. Some unfold like a flower
scenting the air with an aroma
reminding you of a summer day
when you knew your mother and father
loved you and time seemed
endless, full of light and warmth.
But other words form like an ache
where the bullet entered
and a pain where it blew out
the other side, red
not just with the usual blood,
but with speech and every other right.
Michael T. Young's fourth collection, Mountain Climbing a River, was just published by Broadstone Books. His third full-length collection, The Infinite Doctrine of Water, was longlisted for the Julie Suk Award. He received a Fellowship from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts and the Jean Pedrick Chapbook Award. His poetry has been featured on Verse Daily and The Writer’s Almanac. It has also appeared in numerous journals including Chiron Review, The Journal of New Jersey Poets, Mid-Atlantic Review, and Vox Populi.
