If I Ever Die From Racism
I,
Zion Keiandria McThomas,
if I ever die from racism;
my life taken for simply existing.
Don’t put my name with a hashtag
Don’t share the crime on your pages
I don’t need ridicule masked in outrage
that only lasts a couple weeks.
Angela and Micheal trying to be professional
with these white commentators who will
never understand the pain we feel.
The anger we can never show;
the fear we have for our children and ourselves.
Please don’t put me on a t-shirt with wings on my back;
I don’t think God will let me fly to heaven.
The burdens of my soul and the anguish of my death will be too heavy for wings to carry.
I’ll let him carry me to see my dad and uncle and all the others whose wings were given too soon.
This is what I want
This is my last will and testament.
If I was to die from racism,
I want you to rebel.
Yes like Lauryn said
To rebel is to be reborn
Leave Target, Walmart, and Amazon alone!
We created the very foundation they walk on
you don’t think we can survive with our own goods
Black Wall Street 2.0!
Send our sons and daughters to OUR schools
From Alcorn to Xavier, we got options
Stop sending your sons and daughters to be slaves for the D1!
Leave Goodell and Silver where they stand
don’t bounce another ball or throw another pass
Reconnect with the mother and let us all get on one accord
Africa to the West Indies to South America and back again
Turn the transatlantic into the boat to freedom
No need for begging for justice!
No need for getting angry!
Just breakaway!
Stop being the host of culture and let the parasite die on its own
Lastly,
If I never get the chance to,
I want our schools to be remodeled.
New books, latest technology,
no Common Core and the teachers should care.
Take a building deep in Memphis
and build a school with my dad’s name, Gregory A McThomas, across the top
Name the library after my aunt Janis Boston and leave a picture of me in the band hall
saying “there’s nothing free in this life but death.”
That’s all I want.
Sincerely,
Zion Keiandria McThomas
About Zion Keiandria McThomas
Zion "Zee" McThomas was born on April 9, 1996 in Natchez, MS. Since the age of ten, McThomas has been writing poetry to cope with the struggles and strife of her life. Her freshman year at Alcorn brought her into a new light: performing.
Her spoken word made her well known on campus as she won competitions with her dynamic wordplay. Soon, she began to travel performing in Jackson,MS;Memphis,TN, and Atlanta,GA. She has been featured in a national anthology called Bible Belt Queers, numerous magazines and journals and is currently working on the release of her second book, “Black Women Only.”
She hopes to continue this journey reaching more success and helping people find their peace through her words.