Savior – Fiction

Savior

by Joe Alberto
illustration by Bob Buttman

Somewhere between this place
That place and nowhere.
Land of the old ways
Home of hypocrisy
Someone speaks in voice
Raw and filled.
Brimming with hatred.

Malcolm X speaking from some grave.
Six million dollar motion.
Some picture of a lost dream
Hitler still ruling white men
Their minds in his hip pocket.

Someone screams, “RIOT”
The city burns and is glorified.
Everyone screaming, “PREJUDICE”
And white bleeds black
Black bleeds white.
But what about us?

Jimmy put a ring in his nose
Green colored hair
Torn bluejeans
The pockets full of nothing

Jonny dreams of MTV.
“The Real World” fantasy
Some dumb football players
Held him down.
Shaved his head
Clipping away his identity.

Mama and Papa gone away
They don’t want to know
Not us anymore.
Half of us Longhairs, Queers,
Punkers, and Junkies.
Got no table to sit down at
On Easter Sunday.

While everybody worries
About color, shades of skin
All of them crying so loud
Deafening is the sound.

Let them search for racial supremacy.
I’ll sing a melody
You give me a beat.