by Vinay Krishnan
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AI-generated graphic by Shutterstock for The New Verse News. |
when you fly international, one of the TSA’s
prohibited travel items is solidarity for the world’s
oppressed. don’t put solidarity in your luggage. you
can’t leave with that. you definitely can’t home with
that. at customs, we need an itemized list of any
new truths you have in your bags that we’ve been
hiding from you here in America. empty your
pockets and prove to me you’re not carrying a
trinket that connects you to another man’s struggle.
take off your shoes and socks and place your
brown feet on this white floor as a reminder. a
reminder that every border crossing is a strip
search and a cudgel, distilling you into something
that fits more easily into an overhead compartment
or a cage or a grave.
but today I had to laugh at that. because all my
aunties were third world women. and now we're
running it back, old and new blessings. all my
aunties were third world women. all my aunties
were third world women.
