Clare McCullough
Bottle rockets and the
Fourth of July
Who knew freedom came in a pack
Of hamburger buns
A celebration of this great nation
Independence day with nearly 25%
Of the world’s prison population
A history of slavery and terrorism
The mandatory nonvoter forever a nonissue
ignored abused and intimidated; American citizens
For fear that their preaching of acceptance
and tolerance just might start working
Predation is a part of exploitation
We’re American, we’re free but
hypocrisy is in the make of our 1770s jeans
Its not amazing that our empathy isn’t working
Don’t listen to Ron Reagan or Bill Clinton;
poor people are not to blame
it’s the piles of money and decades of shame
Law and order are easy when money has more
Value than Eric Garner’s ability to breathe
Lee, Michelle Ye Hee. “Does the United States Really Have 5 Percent of the World’s Population and One Quarter of the World’s Prisoners?” The Washington Post. WP Company, 30 Apr. 2015. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.
