Brown Boy Infamy

She said he ran when they shouted,
“Stop! We just want to talk”.
My heart heavy, my vision fuzzy
My brown boy running from the police guaranteed a painful death.

We told him,
“When they approach, you do as they say.”
A brown boy in this U.S of A
Means guilty until proven innocent, or dead.”

Even then truth is buried,
Juries are hung.
The flesh you birthed plays its role in a dystopian world.
Brown boy playing on the sidewalk,

Skipping rocks,
Skipping cops,
Skipping prom
And a life full of promise.

Brown boy living the dream,
Brown boy fleeing the scene,
Brown boy deemed dangerous because he’s brown.
Decades of pain enforced by those sworn to protect and serve.

“Don’t judge, lest ye be judged”.
Sunday sermons don’t wash away blood.
Brown boy infamy, brown boy destiny,
Prison, lynchings, a bullet or three.