Many years in the making
The knee that knelt on the neck of George Floyd
may have belonged to the name of some Chauvin
But the burden of bigotry that crushed the windpipe
has been
....many years in the making
The long litany of the trodden and dying
The 'please', 'please' and the final plea of
'I can't breathe' could not reach the ears on duty
of carrying out the prejudice,
deafened by the din that has been
....many years in the making
A Tony Pimpa, an Eric Garner or a Rodney King
among the untold many that would remain nameless
The countless faces that had no voice or fate to claim
Will continue to be crushed under the knees
that have been kneeling on the bosom of humanity
Much longer than twenty-nine seconds and minutes nine
carrying the weight of deep-rooted spleen and antipathy that has been
....many years in the making
And in a faraway land of sandy beaches and warm smiles
A Veronica Nelson is preparing to die
To make a lonely cell her grave and the only bearer
of her lasting pain that has been
...many years in the making