Love Sonnet XVIII

A Poem by redzone

a non-love sonnet

Love Sonnet XVIII

It was a time of change, the 50’s,

with its rebel Beats,

poets who rejected established

norms, wrote of “Wastelands”, and

being “On The Road” to redemption.

And, there we were, blue jeans,

White t-shirts, cigarettes rolled

In the sleeves, cool as hell,

We were invincible, hot-blooded,

daring the world to see us.

Fighting for equality, the American Dream

we knew we deserved. But, real blood

flowed that day. We awoke to Emmitt Till,

savagely lynched, down by the river.

Aztec Warrior / redzone 11.13.2024

NOTE: I was 8 when Emmitt Till was savagely

beaten and lynched. My family was poor, but I never had to face being lynched or beaten for the color of my skin; nor for whistling at a white woman. But in many ways, learning about Emmitt’s life and death, lead me to a path pointing to the realization, America was never great, and I will never accept a fascist America.