The night is as black as skin It falls slowly publicly like an { Eric } Night hushes like { Jordan } Sky creeps like a Black body’s blood Sleepless birds enforce curfew The people are as broken and exposed as { Emmett } Aren’t we? Time drags like { James } Look how { Otis } levitates full-faced and pale among the black walnut trees Stars surround as quickly as officers Again night is dark like Mother’s throat Her cry is black with grief We have moved into metaphor
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For 10 weeks, we will feature one poem per week from Surveillance, the new chapbook available now from Writ Large Press. These poems by Ashaki M. Jackson explore police killings of Blacks captured on video and the public’s consumption of these videos. Previous poems: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8