Is Trump woke? I just heard him recite a powerful poem, written by a pretty hip African American. In it, a woman finds a snake half-dead from cold and hunger and she takes it home with her and revives it, only to be murdered.
Trump asked that we keep “immigration” in our minds when hearing it. I assume he’s talking about how the original peoples of the Americas were treated after many of them took in and cared for the first Europeans to try and migrate here permanently.
Maybe Trump should pen a sequel to the poem (or rather, get a ghost writer to do it for him–someone who can shorten the length by several pages on exclamation point reduction alone!!!!!!!!) in which the snake’s children start to make amends.
They could start by not hissing so damned much. They could stop biting the dead woman’s children. They could stop biting the children, as well as the adults, who now wish to live in peace in the house of this dead woman, a house that the snake, even after killing its owner, never really vacated and never really owned.
Together they could clean up the centuries’ worth of snake skins and the venom imbedded in all the furniture. The snake made the mess, but his children, including me, sadly can’t clean it up on our own.
I’ve been protesting outside of I.C.E. headquarters in Los Angeles for several days now along with dozens, sometimes hundreds, of my fellows, sleeping in a tent most nights, and during the day, successfully blocking at least some of the busses and vans that wish to cart off my fellow human beings–all for the crime of being “illegals” on land that isn’t ours to begin with. And though I’m not proud of the history of theft in this nation from the people who used to live here, I’m proud of making this stand now.
And though I know we are upsetting police business, I don’t see what we’re doing as breaking the law. When you’re living in a stolen house, either everyone is an intruder, or no one is illegal.
With that in mind, I’m very thankful for the Datoka leader who came and spoke with us yesterday, as well as for all the native peoples who have been my siblings over the past few days, sleeping in tents and holding up signs. Even for those who just came to visit, who have at least shared with me and the other protesters at the camp, and been a part of our movement to liberate political refugees and other desperate brothers and sisters from inhumane treatment, I want to thank you for your insights and wisdom, and most of all, for your forgiveness.
If I have to be born a snake, at least I’m glad to be surrounded by great teachers who see humanity even in the snakes. Here’s hoping I can pass that understanding and forgiveness on to the people working for I.C.E, or for the government, even those who wish to infiltrate our camps, bring us down, thwart our plans, or arrest us. I implore you to subvert these evils from within, reveal the lies of our government officials, or to quit your jobs today, and join with us in the fight.