So Says the Red and Blue (A Poem)

So Says the Red and Blue

Amari lived in Oakland Falls

Where life and death wore red and blue,

So Amari's ally said it was time to make our voices heard

To pound the streets with our angry feet.

No mother should have to bury her son,

No father forced to contain his righteous outrage.

Gone are the days of fairness and balance,

Dawned are the days of propaganda and silenced truths.

Keep your mouths shut or you'll be shot,

So says the Red and Blue.

So Amari and his ally pounded the streets day and night,

They cried out 'til their voices cracked.

Soon many others saw their feet and felt their voices touch their souls,

Then they too pounded the streets day and night.

This made many uncomfortable and they quietly plotted.

No mother should have to bury her son,

No father forced to contain his righteous outrage.

Gone are the days of fairness and balance,

Dawned are the days of propaganda and silenced truths.

Keep your mouths shut or you'll be shot,

So says the Red and Blue.

Amari and his ally made their way home, 

now seen as leaders of the few.

In the darkness a shot rang out from a figure cloaked in shadow,

Now Amari is a leader of the few.

His ally died in his arms, bringing him pain and rage,

The shadowed man stood over him to make a final threat,

"Keep your mouth shut or you'll be shot,

So says the Red and Blue."

No mother should have to bury her son,

No father forced to contain his righteous outrage.

Gone are the days of fairness and balance,

Dawned are the days of propaganda and silenced truths.

Keep your mouths shut or you'll be shot,

So says the Red and Blue.

Amari spoke at his ally's funeral

It was eloquent and true.

Yet the propagandists in the media were for the Red and Blue,

Amari fought to debunk the lies told of him and his ally

'til one day he gave up and gave in.

He never spoke of the man of darkness who took his friend's life,

because threats combined with media smears are effective forms of control.

But he knows the truth, so he lives at peace,

until the day comes when he must one day again challenge the Red and Blue.

No mother should have to bury her son,

No father forced to contain his righteous outrage.

Gone are the days of fairness and balance,

Dawned are the days of propaganda and silenced truths.

Keep your mouths shut or you'll be shot,

So says the Red and Blue.

PICTURE SOURCE

https://pixabay.com/en/new-york-city-brooklyn-bridge-night-336475/