Cry Of Defiance Poem by Silas Rosalie Dumont

They shot some folks down in Buffalo
Scarcely three hours away
They ran over a family nearby
A year ago, almost to the day
In DC they're marching to Gilead
The bombs sound in Ukraine faraway
They disgraced the dead in Palestine
I am filled with a clawing dread
Flight or fight is triggered
And suddenly I want to hide
I want to run to the hills of my fore-parents
To seek refuge among the trees
And then suddenly my thoughts, they freeze
Wait a second
This is what they want
They are not but cowards
Their goal is to inspire fear
So long as I will keep hiding, they can pretend I'm not here
Out of the shadows
That's where I need to be
Screaming from the rooftops for the whole world to see
And only to see, for they'll likely not hear
But I scream regardless, they can't have my fear
So I challenge them, as though to a fight
To take me from myself
They say it's their right
So here is my manifesto
A declaration of light
That I will engrave in the stars of the night
Children of Hate, I call you to me
Ableists, crush my autistic brain
Racists, drink my native blood
Directly from my veins
Queerphobes, come on, we both know you're not really scared
Come on and eat my beating queer heart
Sacrifice it, do your part
Load your guns and break down my door,
Be it on the streets or in a grocery store
But do be aware, these are hard to fulfill
Bring lots of ammo, I'm double to kill