Year 2025 Poem: “We Rise As One”, by Marcel Mboui

In the streets where cries echo and cry ,
For justice hides under the blanket of silence,
A voice roars out, brave and bold—
A cry for change long awaited

The names we call out, the lives we grieve,
Are no less than hashtags made in the past.
They were fathers, daughters, dreams, and light,
Now embarrassment and erasure set in stone and endless nights.

And we march forward, in rain or flame,
Holding our banners high, holding sacred names.
We speak about truths that some around us are hesitant to see
Because they come from a history or context that is painfully carved.

No justice? No peace?
Then we will raise our hands, walk up this hill.
With every step, with every breath,
We reclaim love in the face of fate, we honour death.

We DO NOT ask to stand on the shoulders of those who came before us.
We ask for equity and love, equity for justice, love for hearts.
Dignity for those whose voices are heard,
For dignity, for voices clear.

Black lives matter—not more, not less,
In a world that frankly needs to readdress the ridiculous amount,
Of stolen grace these past centuries.
For equity we fight for the right space.

So light the truth, and hold it high,
Let no truth quiver, let no hope die.
Let no pain go from soft whimpers to raucoused call,
We still believe.
We still rise.