In our 2nd to last week at Social Justice High School, we watched and read the poem “Rise” by Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner and Aka Niviâna. These two poets share how climate change has and will continue to affect their communities first on Marshall Islands and Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenland), perspectively. Poets were then tasked to write about something they believe in.
Check out this week’s poem!
Mr. Robles’ Class
Irheli P.
Use me in the way I was made to be used.
Use me as your personal servant
Abuse me when I disobey
Use me to grow the plants in the
yard you’ll never come back to
Use my brain-dead body as your personal
incubator.
Abuse my rights as a human being if
you even see me as one.
Use me when you can’t learn
control yourself and shame me for being
comfortable in my own clothes
Strip my right away and say I’m
overreacting.
Turn against me, even though it can
happen to you too.
Plant the seed in the soil that belongs
to me, take the petals of the flower
before it’s bloomed and discard it the
way you did to me.
Discard the seed in my soil and shame
me for being a woman that “asked for it”
shame me for not wanting the burden
of trauma that you forced into my hand
Shame me, use me, and abuse me in
the way you deem necessary because
I’m a woman.
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