Red hats, red hats

Elie Wiesel once said we must never remain silent in the face of Hate. Humanity can only be saved in truth, and the revealing of lies.

Red hats, red hats

By

Carlos Lorenzo Estrada 

Red hats, red hats

Screaming in a crowd.

Blissfully ignorant 

Petulant and loud.

Bigoted in heart

Which they often deny.

"Go back to where you came from!"

Is often their war cry.

Red hats, red hats obtuse to pestilence.

Many lay dead reflect their indifference.

They rail incessant clamoring 

"My body my choice!"

While denying this same right

To a woman's voice.

Red hats, red hats when will you see

America is beautiful through diversity.

Prejudice and hatred

Revealed toward skin tone.

Beware what you reap

For the same shall be sown.

Red hats, red hats with hate they can't disguise.

They're faithless, and cowardly and fill the world with lies.

Author's Note

lyrical and allegorical which speaks to our worse impulses as human beings. In a nation created by slave owners who aspired future generations to be better then them by creating a diverse unified country, we are failing that dream. If we can't learn to accept and love one another then we truly do not deserve these privileged sacrosanct ideas we were founded on. Shame on us because we can't even find value in a single life lost by hatred, bullets, plague, and politics.

Reviews

[Pete]

those red hats bring attention to racism and bigotry. those who practice it are slaves to themselves, shackled with the burden of indifference. things have a way of turning around - the oppressors become the oppressed. very well written and well said. an important topic ... :)

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

thank you pete for reading and commenting on this writing. I really appreciate it. I always strive to touch on topics that are meaningful and important to discuss. To start a conversation with respect and appreciation from both sides in order to meet common goals and equity. The talking has to begin somewhere so I try and give it the space it needs. We can't strive to be better if we refuse to recognize our faults. Thank you again.

[Shelley Warner]

A very visual and auditory poem.

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you, Shelley, for your thoughts. To be honest this probably wasn't my best writing, but it was one of the most impacting and angry pieces. I can not stay silent in the face of hatred. To do so is to be accepting and culpable of the actions from such hate. If we are to live up to the higher ideas that define the aspirations of this country then we must take a stand against those who don't. As a person of color it is imperative that I speak out and use my voice, if not then I will lose that right as well as the right to be American. Then I will be no less then what these people of hatred consider me, 3 fifths a human being. Thank you so much for reading and leaving your thoughts on this poem.

[Cyprian Van Dyke]

After I read this well-penned moving write I looked up read hats and I believe I know what you're talking about but to tell you the truth, your poem (and note) created a greater detailed picture than google. Wonderfully explained and expressed. tyfs, I enjoyed this read.

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you, Cyprian, for reading and reviewing this poem. I can't stay silent on such matters because to do so in a degree gives license to such behavior and a bit of culpability as well. It is my written defiance against hatred and its unacceptable behavior. We either take a stand or our silence becomes compliance. Thank you again for your words.

[Poetic Beauty]

This world can be quite a mess sometimes.

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

I agree, but I remain a total optimist, perhaps defiantly so. Thank you, PB, for your thoughts.

[Neville]

.. whilst I try to avoid ever getting too heated & particularly involved in the politics of another nation .. I must confess .. I breathed a massive sigh of relief when that narcissistic, moronic billionaire geezer recently got dethroned .. brilliant poem by the way Carlos .. persecution is an injustice we can all well do without .. it usually involves bullies, greed and more than just a smidgen of psychopathology ..

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

I am not by nature a drinking man, but I would gladly lift a toast to these words of your's my friend. We still have a tremendous amount of growth still needed to live up to our own diverse ideology, but I'm still optimistic we can rise to the challenge of these days. Getting rid of the bigoted orangutan was a step in the right direction for starters. Once we move past dealing with these insurrectionists it should get easier from there. If we fail to do so then our reckoning is well deserved. Thank you, Neville, for reading and commenting on this work. I appreciate it.

[Neville]

and you sir .. are much more than merely welcome ..

[Lorry]

It's always those with least to say that say it the loudest Carlos. Sometimes the best defiance is to ignore, but everyone has their own limits and unity for the greater good will always be the goal of the many to drown out the few.

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you Lorry for your words. When writing words of counter and defiance I am taken back to the great American Jewish author Elie Wiesel who spoke with profound wisdom and love about the plight of the persecuted: "Not to respond to their plight, not to relieve their solitude by offering them a spark of hope is to exile them from human memory. And in denying their humanity we betray our own." I will try to live his words for the rest of my life. And I won't be silent because too much is at stake. To be silent is to accept culpability in the actions of others. To be indifferent to the suffering of others because you agreed with the enemy in belief that those persecuted are less human and deserve to be treated so. As a person of color our greatest fear is to be rejected by our society in a belief we are less deserving to be patriotic or less part of society because of skin tone. This kind of hate has no place in our world, this kind of inhuman indifference should never be the norm. We should always strive to pick sides between hate and love. There is no choice for which one I would gladly die for. And I say this with the least hyperbole possible and only from my heart. Thank you for your kind words I truly appreciate them.

[Lorry]

Apt it is now 1am on July 4th...now that would be something worth celebrating.
A happy and safe independence day to all our friends across the pond.

[Samuel Dickens]

Amen, I say. There is madness in the world, and much of it is found in the cult of the orange baby man. What the hell is wrong with them? I thought no one could be more inept that Dubya, but I was wrong.

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

I am in total agreement with you there, Samuel. It has gone beyond a political party. From all the films and documentaries I have seen about world War 2 it is almost as if we are living Germany's nightmare within our own society. There is such a palpable hate that is coming from these people they're not even afraid to hide it anymore. They obfuscate and lie by claiming they can't be racist because they have friends or relatives of color. It's insanity. I remember back in the day when they feigned outrage over Clinton's affair, and yet this orange Baboon was busted for paying off two women he had sex with while married and running for office. John Edward's went to jail for almost the same political finance scheme Drumph did and yet this orange idiot got off free. That truly is injustice. So many crimes coming to light from stealing money from their inauguration fund to the insurrection and all the malfeasance in-between. It will be decades before we can fully clean this mess up. The cult of the red hats needs to disappear into the trash bin of foul history. We have a lot of healing to do as a country till then. Thank you for stopping by and sharing your thoughts my friend.

[Samuel Dickens]

I believe that absolutely nothing is sacred to 99% of republicans. Family values, abortion, the military, cops, JESUS--they will turn their backs on all those things under the right conditions.

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

You are absolutely 100 percent correct in your assessment. They proved it by electing the worst human being possible for president. Case in point 605 thousand deaths from covid in the US. And climbing. They literally elected death to be president and would do it again if they had the choice. That takes a lot of hate for human life to want to do that. They are not religious they are nihilist.

[Betty Hermelee]

A great comment on our past president and his hate group followers….what he created will take years to undo….let’s hope he gets his justice and disappears from politics….the perchance we may have a more unified country….let’s burn those red hats and forget he ever lived.
Nice job
Best, B

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you, Betty, I am in total agreement with you on that. He brought out the worst of us as a nation and it will take many years to clean this up. It's time for a woman to run this country, and honestly it's been time for quite a while now. I feel we can become a more sympathetic nation with a woman's touch. I'm so tired of war and hate. This country needs to start loving again especially each other, or it won't last much longer. Thank you so much Betty, for the kind words.

[Dave Brown]

this rightly or no takes me to Michael Jordan's wealth
$1.6 billion all from being able to bounce a ball and is probably enough to support every street person

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

wealth has too much of a say in our society. When major corporations pay almost no taxes whatsoever leaving the majority of Middle class and lower to fit the bill then there is something gravely wrong in this country. We need actual reform in taxation and complete equity throughout society. This is not an oligarchy, we are a democracy with republic principles. Our diversity is a right and born of the ideology that all men and women are created equal under the eyes of our laws. I'm sick and tired of rich people getting away with breaking our laws with their greed and serving no time in prison. While a person of color gets thrown into prison for 20 years smoking a joint. How is that even equal let alone fair? People need to wake up and stop voting against their own self interests. Stop sending these rich lawyers, doctors, and rich people to serve in our government who will on average make over 200 thousand a year to do nothing but serve the rich and themselves on our tax dollars. It's the height of hypocrisy and makes no sense. We need to actually reform our government and get real people serving in those positions. And not stupid ones either, which I know may be a challenge hahaha. But I believe we are up for the task. We have to be. Because we really don't have a choice. Either we do it or the red hats win.

[L.E.Osborne]

I don't know if it's a good thing or not but I immediately knew who you were referring to! Sadly every verse is truthful. This has a lovely rhyme scheme to it while still sending out a message. Very nice. x

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you for your kind review. It is not surprising that red hats will be forever linked to a particular type of political individual. And it is unfortunate that in a place that is a beacon of hope to the world for its diversity this hateful type of person came to be born. I know we have always had racists in our country but they always seemed to hide in the shadows with a few donning white hoods. But to brazenly wear red hats and overtly speak their vile rhetoric really is something new. Especially when they were emboldened to attack our capitol and rub feces and urine on the walls while wearing racist shirts and waving a confederate flag in one of our most sacred buildings. As a person of color I was both horrified and saddened by what I saw. No more. This type of hatred is incompatible to the ideology this nation was founded on. We need to reform our entire society from education, equity in our laws, right to vote, and actual free healthcare for all. And most importantly remove all semblance of hateful symbols and statues that have no right to exists in our free diverse society. It is not a free speech issue it is a human rights issue; my right to feel equal with everyone else wherever I go in this nation. Thank you so much for reading this poem.