Do you feel safe now
that a brown man was snuffed out in your driveway
face down
squashed like a bug?
He made your eyes sore
Obviously he doesn’t belong here
too close to my white picket fence
he could stumble over it
smash it
what then?
The dogs don’t like him either
barking
barking
my whiteness so translucent—
even though we have a double lock
video cam
and alarm system
I know he can see right through me—
Do something!
He can’t exist next to our purity, our property, our legacy
doesn’t include him!
Look, he’s talking to himself
I’m so scared looking out my window
I can’t change the channel
He’s so big and brown
Do something!
911! 911!
a brown man is too close to my home
he’s scaring my wife
her whiteness is threatened she could be
getting darker
Do something!
This is Alameda.
These types don’t exist here
can’t exist here
that’s why we moved here
where we can see
only ourselves-
that’s what we pay for
that’s why we’re here
It’s alright honey
all white
they took care of him-
look, no blood
we can back up our minivan
over the spot he was murdered
like it never happened
like nothing
ever
happened.
Copyright 2021 Alison Hart
To support Mario Gonzalez’s family: https://www.gofundme.com/f/justice-4-mario-family?utm_campaign=p_lico+share-sheet&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=customer
Copyright 2021 Alison Hart
To support family of Mario Gonzalez who was murdered by Alameda Police on April 19, 2021 go to: