#living with poetry

[inkskinned]

it's extremely critical that you see the photo of the perp walk for luigi mangione as being propaganda. i've seen so many people wave it off and instead fawn over his looks. and trust me, i know it ended up being kind of pathetic and weird - but please don't brush it off as a "modelling opportunity" for him. it's a fucking terrifying message the police are sending.

i want to make a few comparisons here, in case you're not from the US or familiar with why the perp walk thing is something to pay attention to. just to set the groundwork for why this is a purposeful, unusual, and cruel act by the nyc police - for why this is not a common occurrence and for why that matters.

the prosecution alleges the show of force is due to the charge of "terrorism." for comparison, in june 2015, tsarnaev was found guilty for the boston marathon bombing, which killed 3 people and injured hundreds. his actions are considered to be an act of domestic terrorism. i have spent the last hour looking through google for pictures of similar to mangione's perp walk - and so far, i have found zero. i also just do not personally remember a moment like that, despite living in boston at the time.

they allege that luigi is a stone-cold killer who carried out a longterm plan, making him particularly dangerous. again for comparison: in nyc, recently cory martin was found guilty of the killing of brandy odom. the murder was planned and premeditated to steal insurance money. and yet no staged perp walk. why didn't her life matter enough for a "show of force"?

but mangione gets paraded by a veritable army of police officers as if he is a rabid animal. for a single citizen who allegedly killed one other single citizen, the "largest perp walk ever" occurs.

so what is the "strong message" that the mayor and the police were trying to send here? the mayor speaks as if mangione is already convicted of terrorism. there is a very thin number of people who feel threatened by the CEO's death. none of us felt like mangione needs to be under massive armed guard.

the message is that you shouldn't resist. they are trying to "make an example" of him - that if you behave badly and kill a single rich person, you'll be treated as if you killed hundreds of people. you will be treated worse than a man who was found guilty of terrorism. you will be considered guilty without trial. the message is that the rich are a protected class, and you cannot touch them without massive punishment. they are trying to prevent a revolution by showing dominance and force against you.

the message is that the police are a puppet of the wealthy and that the law is not equally applied across class disparity. it is "some are more equal than others." it is "one life is more precious than another."

the show of force wasn't for luigi. it was for us. it was a warning. they are trying to remind us who is really in control.

[minimalist-quotes]

Don't make the mistake of being so understanding and forgiving that you overlook the fact that you're being disrespected.

[words-at-night]

[druid-for-hire]

[image id: a four-page comic. it is titled "immortality” after the poem by clare harner (more popularly known as “do not stand at my grave and weep”). the first page shows paleontologists digging up fossils at a dig. it reads, “do not stand at my grave and weep. i am not there. i do not sleep.” page two features several prehistoric creatures living in the wild. not featured but notable, each have modern descendants: horses, cetaceans, horsetail plants, and crocodilians. it reads, “i am a thousand winds that blow. i am the diamond glints on snow. i am the sunlight on ripened grain. i am the gentle autumn rain.” the third page shows archaeopteryx in the treetops and the skies, then a modern museum-goer reading the placard on a fossil display. it reads, “when you awaken in the morning’s hush, i am the swift uplifting rush, of quiet birds in circled flight. i am the soft stars that shine at night. do not stand at my grave and cry.” the fourth page shows a chicken in a field. it reads, “i am not there. i did not die” / end id]

a comic i made in about 15 hours for my school’s comic anthology. the theme was “evolution”

[thehobbitchronicles]

[europasage]

on kindness.

@shanastoryteller // @delepiphany on pinterest // @girlmostlikely // @anotherchocolate12 on tiktok // @frogus // @xotwodstarr on pinterest // the smiths, i know it's over

[mariampoetry]

Gazan Artist Donation Dive Part 3

Our next Gazan artist is my dear friend Fadi Thabet, an international award winning photographer. He is known for his street photography, a way for him to express his passion for photography while documenting the everyday life of Gaza. He captures faces in a unique way to highlight beauty amongst the hardship and the unexpected.

Check out his art through photography in a song that I wrote. All what you see in the background are Fadi's photographs.

Fadi lost his home in Gaza and many of his family and friends, he lost count of the times he was displaced in this genocide.

Please show him your support and love through this 5 day campaign. We are hoping to send him $1000 to help with his suffering and above all, to show Fadi that we see him and appreciate his art and talent.

Until when?

Lyrics by Mariam Alammuri, Photography by Fadi Thabet, Performance by Abdelfatah Owainat, Music by Avo Aram

Until when will the darkness haunt me? How long in fear will I wake up or sleep? How long, O universe, will I wait for peace?

My holiday is passing and I crave the sweetest singing

High on the wing of a dream I embrace the sky

What did I do and what sin did I commit

to wake up from my dream to the color of blood

I am your child, by God, extend a hand to me

All I hope for is to live tomorrow

In love, in joys, in safety, together..

I beg of you, do not let my pleading voice echo back at me

[hopelessvalentines]

and i am still learning!!!

[softhe4rted]

to begin with, the sweet grass by mary oliver, from “devotions”

[notasoupcompany]

[lesbianjudasiscariot]

I've Endured, Now What?

Blue Iris - Mary Oliver / So This Is All I Will Ever Be? - Fatima Aamer Bilal / Vive, Vive - Traci Brimhall

[pellazg]

I tasted her lips and realised ive been starving.

[moonlitfairytale]

Anne Sexton, A Self-Portrait in Letters

[feral-ballad]

Alex Dimitrov, from Love and Other Poems; “Love”

[its-simply-just-krys]

anonymous ; found on pinterest