...the angels turn away
shamed by sight
of a people who would
make martyr of murderer
and common criminals
liberators
and declare the drug dealer absolved
by the 4Runners and foot-runners he owns
and the money he has to burn
celebrate the success of crime
the triumph of lies and liars
the downfall of honest endeavors
and men as moronic
for being sincere
and determine how full of fun
their day of demonstration is
by how many
muggings and maulings are executed
and women are molested downtown
and the number of workplaces shut down
and stores pillaged
and burnt down by fires lit
by a madman with a vision one-tracked
to the throne
who mock the messages
of Mahatma and Mandela
murder the messengers
of reconciliation
and giggle and jump-up
happy as a herd of swine
wallowing in its own excrement
as the tempo
of the drums of war grow
towards frenzy
and whisper
as if prayer:
Harken ye the words
of your children:
Walter, the most brilliant and humble,
betrayed and blown to bits
for his caution:
together cling
all you wretched and abused
with hands and hearts entwined and grounded
that they not be made to bear guns
to make this a no-man’s land!
Recall the laments
of your son Martin
and his disillusion and pain:
‘So jail me quickly, clang the illiterate door
if freedom writes no happier alphabet.’
and his admonition
like that of Donne
timeless and good for all men:
‘…all are involved!
all are consumed!’
and give heed
though late
so late
lest this your ‘nation’
self-styled and so-called
though sundered
and already splintered like wood for fire
indeed becomes the fuel
for a terminal conflagration
of its children’s creation!
Zanan Magazine [Fa] (means “women's magazine”) was banned by the Iranian government two weeks ago, after 16 years in print. Iranian authorities have canceled the license sof many journals and magazines in recent years, but Zanan's closure has stirred strong international and national protests.
