Freedom Has One Colour Poem by Favour Chinemerem Ugwumba

Hello,
Is this Freedom?

Yes, who are you?

This is me, A girl who saw the world nearly come to a end
Because of oppression, marginalisation, and hate.

And I do have some questions.
OKay, let's talk


*
You're freedom.
Aren't you supposed to be free
Because I can tell you about
People who fought for you and died
Which leads to my next question
Couldn't you have just come on your own and save them
The sweat, the tears, and finally their blood.


*
I thought I was free
I thought I could finally express myself
But No

They're still scared of me
My boldness
My beauty
My colour
My influence
My standard
My guts
My culture


I should have known
Nothing is really free
Even freedom


*

She was fourteen
You gave her up for marriage
A marriage she was expected to have child
She was still a child herself

You left her with no choice
You made the biggest decision of her life for her
Her will, wish, desire, future didn't even matter
At all

I'm your father
You will respect me
I'm your Mother
You're getting marriedand that's final

She cried
She pleaded
She gave up
It was done, She's a woman after all

Freedom is not deaf
She will hear her cries
And provide her which choices and options you never gave her


*
Allow boys play with dolls and paint their nails pink
Allow girls to like blue and play with boys
Allow them be who they are.

Don't just allow them
Accept them
Don't just accept them
Agree with them
That's who they are and not who they choose to be.

*
They said I could love anyone
But they lied to me,
You put my fate in the hands of law
Forgetting that even the law can lie
And justice is not just



*
Funny you teach you daughters Virginity
And you forget to talk to them aboutpurity
You think they've lost their dignity.
When they get involved in an act of sexuality
Before their wedding night

Teach your daughter to have pure hearts, pure thoughts, pure mind
That's it
Let them understand
That's it's okay
To Fall in love
To Fall out of love
To Live the life
To love the life
To make mistakes
To cry
To have regrets.
To blame themselves
To love themselves first
And others will too




*
She lay on the floor
With pain and sorrow from previous abuse
She tried to wipe the tears
And pretend everything was fine
But she couldn't
It was all too much to bear

She couldn't lie on the floor any longer
She got up and had a bath
Put her best makeup on
A smile, because if she doesn't endure the pain
Her sorrow would increase
And she had her son to protect.

He didn't forget to say I love you before leaving
A love so full of hate
And he never forgot to buy flowers on his way back
A hate so full of love



*
He saw her mom abused by her father
The slaps, the kicks, the screams, the tears.

He wanted to make it stop
So he picked up the kitchen knife
And stabbed his dad

It stopped,
The slaps, the kicks, the screams, the tear.
Serenity was restored,

*
Abuse is a disease
Even time cannot heal
The scar is there to remind you
That you're a survivor
You don't have to dwell on it
You just have to deal with it.


*
The Fight for equality is not so women could be Men
And men women
Its rather for all gender to have same opportunity irrespective of sexuality

Fight! Fight!
For this is no riot, this the revolution.