POLITICAL Poem: Accumulation of Brainwashed Racists Hijacking Patriotism—, by Jeffrey Beck

They flutter like flags
High above tailgates and
Blowing through November skies
Like signal smoke

I put on my mask and intention
Dressed like no one worth a second glance
With camera in hand
Just another shade of silent white
In a sea that smiles too wide

They are so nice
Too nice
The sugary grins are brittle and fragile
That shatters if you speak wrong

And I walk anyway
Up the middle of Pennsylvania Ave
The empty arteries of the most democratic
City in the world
Are lined with souvenirs of hate
And scented with deep-fried grievance and denim.

Pickup trucks as altars
With zip-tied flags in profane trinity
Bound unwillingly, the American flag
A hostage held for ransom
By the One-Percent

Children march alongside parents
In miniature red hats and slogans of hate
Tiny blank faces beneath bright declarations
They can’t read but will remember
Forever

The chants rose
Like false church Psalms
The congregation synchronized
To a man’s disguise
A cheer on cue
With a fist pump

I came for the photos
And left with a warning
That fear wears smiles
And hate waves flags
That history can be hijacked
In broad daylight at Freedom Plaza