You are hereBlogs / War Criminals Watch's blog / Gather - Alice Walker Poem on NYPD Murder of Eric Garner

Gather - Alice Walker Poem on NYPD Murder of Eric Garner


By War Criminals Watch - Posted on 17 September 2014

Over a month ago, Michael Brown was shot six times by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri.  More witnesses have come forward to corroborate eye-witness testimony that Brown's hands were up, and he was not aggressive. But, still Officer Darren Wilson is on paid vacation.  No indictment, no justice.

Mike Brown's funeral
On Saturday August 9, we saw the image of Brown's body, lying in the street, uncovered, for four hours, while his mother sobbed on the curb, begging the police to let a nurse look at his body.  There are no longer big crowds in the streets of Ferguson, but this is not over.

I sometimes wonder how many people understand what it's like for young Black and Latino men to walk the streets with a target on their chests.  Do each of us know the hurt of having loved ones' lives stolen?  What about a body lying for hours with no respect given, treated as disposable?
Along comes renowned author Alice Walker, with a new poem about the NYPD murder of Eric Garner,conveying, with deep grace, some of the understanding and challenge needed, as we head into the October Month of Resistance to Mass Incarceration, Police Terror, Repression, and the Criminalization of a Generation.  Thank you, Alice.
A group of high school interns in the World Can't Wait office read the poem together, and it gave us a lot to think and talk about.  One had not seen the video of the NYPD killing Eric Garner, the man whose unjust death has brought protest in NYC.  You might not have seen it, but you can, here.  60 days have gone by, and no indictment of the officers who killed Eric.
We're asking your assistance in spreading this poem everywhere, including on your blogs & websites, on social media, in classrooms, at poetry nights, readings and protests about police brutality and political repression.  Please share when you do so.

Gather
©2014 by Alice Walker
for  Carl Dix and Cornel West

It is still hard to believe
that millions of us saw Eric Garner die.
He died with what looked like a half dozen
heavily clad
policemen
standing on his body, twisting and crushing
him
especially his head
and neck.
He was a big man, too.  They must have felt
like clumsy midgets
as they dragged him down.

Watching the video,
I was reminded of the first lynching
I, quite unintentionally, learned about:
it happened in my tiny lumber mill 
town before the cows were brought in
and young white girls
on ornate floats
became dairy queens.
A big man too,
whom my parents knew,
he was attacked also by a mob
of white men (in white robes and hoods)
and battered to death
by their two by fours.

I must have been a toddler
overhearing my parents talk
and mystified by pieces of something
called “two by fours.”

Later, building a house, 
i would encounter the weight,
the heaviness, of this varying length
of wood, and begin to understand.

Read the whole poem at Alice Walker's Garden.
Get involved with the Month of Resistance:

Speaking Events

2017

 

August 2-6: Peace and Democracy Conference at Democracy Convention in Minneapolis, Minn.

 

September 22-24: No War 2017 at American University in Washington, D.C.

 

October 28: Peace and Justice Studies Association Conference



Find more events here.

CHOOSE LANGUAGE

Support This Site

Donate.

Get free books and gear when you become a supporter.

 

Sponsors:

Speaking Truth to Empire

***

Families United

***

Ray McGovern

***

Julie Varughese

***

Financial supporters of this site can choose to be listed here.

 

Ads:

Ca-Dress Long Prom Dresses Canada
Ca Dress Long Prom Dresses on Ca-Dress.com

Buy Books

Get Gear

The log-in box below is only for bloggers. Nobody else will be able to log in because we have not figured out how to stop voluminous spam ruining the site. If you would like us to have the resources to figure that out please donate. If you would like to receive occasional emails please sign up. If you would like to be a blogger here please send your resume.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Image CAPTCHA
Enter the characters shown in the image.