i've posted this here before, a long time ago, but was just going through some older #writing and read it again and felt like it could do another go-around.
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july 4, 2022

today’s mass shooting
takes place in highland park illinois
at the independence day parade
where a crowd gathers
with lawn chairs and strollers
along sunny suburban streets
to celebrate
america
a nation where
failed insurrectionists
who sought presidential pardons
still occupy seats in congress
a nation where
corporations are people
money is speech
and the legal right
to a livable planet
has yet to be established
a nation where
police officers stand by
outside
unlocked classroom doors
while yet another school shooter
slaughters children
and teachers inside
a nation where
the supreme court says
it’s in the second amendment
the right to a gun
in nearly every hand
that wants one
so what can you do

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#writing #poem #poetry #usa #uspol