Black Lives Matter & Ahmaud Arbery
Recently, there was a video that surfaced of two white men killing an innocent black man in Atlanta, Georgia. This video, and the fact that the two men had not been prosecuted for months, as well as the fact that Arbery had done nothing wrong- has led to a resurgence of both the BLM movement, ACAB, and the Black Panthers. Therefore, I believe that this poem is especially timely for right now.
The poem, entitled, Facing US, is a poem written by Amanda Johnston, an African American poet known for making Social Justice poems. Her poem details her feelings and thoughts as a black woman in America after the shooting of Freddie Gray. Freddie Gray was 25 years old, and lived in Baltimore. He was a young man, who had a twin sister named Fredericka. He struggled in poverty throughout his life, but according to the Washington Post,
"Close friends of Gray, who was 5-foot-8 and 145 pounds, described him as loyal and warm, humorous and happy. “Every time you saw him, you just smiled, because you knew you were going to have a good day,” said Angela Gardner, 22, who had dated him off and on over the past two years."
His death was one of many that led to the creation of the Black Lives Matter Movement, as well as riots in Baltimore because of the disgusting way his death was handled. I could go further into what happened with the police specifically, but a summarized version of events is that he was illegally arrested, beat, and killed by Baltimore policemen who then tried to cover up his death before citizen footage of his arrest surfaced on the internet. Furthermore, all charges against the Baltimore police department were dropped.
What is terrifying about revisiting Freddie Gray is the eery similarities to the case of Ahmaud Arbery. Both men were black and unjustifiably killed, arguably because of their race. And furthermore, with both cases, both police departments attempted to cover up the murder, before a viral video of each of them was released. Ahmaud was also 25 years old and lived with his mother as well. He was a jogger, and in good shape, and working towards being an electrician.
Facing US also describes Johnston protesting, or rioting against the injustice.
"My black face fades,
hiding inside black smoke.
I knew they'd use it,
dammit: tear gas."
As well as her relating to Gray's murder, as a black woman herself in America,
"Their clouded assumption eyes me
like a runaway, guilty as night,
chasing morning. . . "
What terrifies me about Johnston's poetry is that although it has been 2 years since her poem was written about Gray, the exact same instance occurred just days ago. My hope is that by memorializing this poem and its meaning to me now- SOME CHANGE will be made in the upcoming years.
Rest In Peace Ahmaud Arbery
Rest In Peace Freddie Gray
Rest In Peace Eric Garner
Rest In Peace Michael Brown
Rest In Peace Tamir Rice
Rest In Peace Sandra Bland
Rest In Peace Philando Castile
Rest In Peace All Black People Who Have Been Unjustifiably Killed By White People & Cops In This Country
#BlackLivesMatter #NoJusticeNoPeace
The poem, entitled, Facing US, is a poem written by Amanda Johnston, an African American poet known for making Social Justice poems. Her poem details her feelings and thoughts as a black woman in America after the shooting of Freddie Gray. Freddie Gray was 25 years old, and lived in Baltimore. He was a young man, who had a twin sister named Fredericka. He struggled in poverty throughout his life, but according to the Washington Post,
"Close friends of Gray, who was 5-foot-8 and 145 pounds, described him as loyal and warm, humorous and happy. “Every time you saw him, you just smiled, because you knew you were going to have a good day,” said Angela Gardner, 22, who had dated him off and on over the past two years."
His death was one of many that led to the creation of the Black Lives Matter Movement, as well as riots in Baltimore because of the disgusting way his death was handled. I could go further into what happened with the police specifically, but a summarized version of events is that he was illegally arrested, beat, and killed by Baltimore policemen who then tried to cover up his death before citizen footage of his arrest surfaced on the internet. Furthermore, all charges against the Baltimore police department were dropped.
What is terrifying about revisiting Freddie Gray is the eery similarities to the case of Ahmaud Arbery. Both men were black and unjustifiably killed, arguably because of their race. And furthermore, with both cases, both police departments attempted to cover up the murder, before a viral video of each of them was released. Ahmaud was also 25 years old and lived with his mother as well. He was a jogger, and in good shape, and working towards being an electrician.
Facing US also describes Johnston protesting, or rioting against the injustice.
"My black face fades,
hiding inside black smoke.
I knew they'd use it,
dammit: tear gas."
As well as her relating to Gray's murder, as a black woman herself in America,
"Their clouded assumption eyes me
like a runaway, guilty as night,
chasing morning. . . "
What terrifies me about Johnston's poetry is that although it has been 2 years since her poem was written about Gray, the exact same instance occurred just days ago. My hope is that by memorializing this poem and its meaning to me now- SOME CHANGE will be made in the upcoming years.
Rest In Peace Ahmaud Arbery
#BlackLivesMatter #NoJusticeNoPeace
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