Apartheid

She's not going home tonight 'cause mom had a relapse
He's been acting out because the foster workers just don't care
In this row of streets their agony is commonplace

And I think back to their age:
Aimless wandering and play to fill the days
Nothing separating us but colonial trauma and fifteen blocks
And the agents of the state who trot out a caregiving masquerade

I see apartheid with a capital A
Can't raise a monument for changes yet to be made
Self worship is not reconciliation

Never see you envy what the next person has
A semblance of defeat you refuse to internalize
Every single day you find a way to concentrate

On the basic elements of joy common in human experience
Maybe more of us could take a queue and find the will to appreciate
The very presence of our kin and reconsider who we see value in

I see apartheid with a capital A