Just The Way I See It Poem by Mustafa Marconi

Raised in a land of plenty
Where luxuries were few
Where many were defined
By the threads, so divine
For only the tangible things were cool
Set off like so many
To hone my trendy mode
My walk, my style, my temperament
My gestures, slang, and guile
To compliment so exquisitely
The threads that looked so fine
Everyone was wearing them
And if not, you wasn't down
So we gathered up the crew
Reckless and resolute
Never understanding that we were the targets
Of a dream that almost never came through
My parents worked endlessly
Pursuing the American dream
Unable to yield little more than the bare essentials
To feed and clothed their burgeoning brood
The price for their loyalty and patriotism
Our hunger and unanswered prayers
The price for our disconnect from society
Incarceration, Indentured servitude, racial profiling,
Second class citizenship and despair
From petty larceny we moved up to burglaries
Feeling a false sense of invincibility
Bolstered by pure luck and coincidence
We graduated to armed and violent robberies
Our parents working endlessly
Pursuing the American dream
Unable to spare more than a couple of passing seconds
To nurture their burgeoning brood
The price for their patience and loyalty
Our indoctrination to servitude
The price for our disconnect from America
Ignorance, Incarceration, second class citizenship,
Poverty, racial profiling and despair
So we gather up the crew
Reckless, heartless, and resolute
Never appreciating that we were the targets
Of a dream that will never, ever come through
Where style was preferable to substance
And only the tangible things were cool