"I CAN'T BREATHE," by Samantha Burris

The weight of his boot

cemented on my neck

suffocating me

            “mama…mama”

Even as a grown man

the fear of a small child

lost in the world alone and afraid

resides in me

calling out for mama

longing to feel her warm home and

her safe arms embracing me

Timelapse memories of my life flashing by

as my eyes flutter, fighting to stay alive

as my world fades to white

                               I

  can’t

breathe

inhaling exhaling

slowly feeling my life slip between concrete cracks

How does his badge give him the power

To take my life from me?

            He isn’t God

Speaking to God

            “Why do I have to suffer like this?”

Suffocating beneath the foot of a man

that feels superior to me

stepping on me as if it the color of my skin

is the dirt of the earth’s elements

I am beneath him

my skin color automatically convicting me of guilt

my blackness armed me even though I was unarmed

            “I didn’t steal anything”

I struggle to say through aspirated breaths

and clenched teeth as my face is pressed

to the cold, gritty, and hard surface of the concrete.

I’ve been enduring this pain for approximately

9 minutes and 29 seconds

minutes that feel like hours

like telling time on a broken clock

my heartbeat fading into the shadow

I’ve been captured in my whole life

            Thump…Thump…Thump

Bystanders watching as this man steals my life

            He’s the convict!

Now that my heart stops beating

They rise at my demise

Now they scream my name

Now Black lives matter.

Their voices echoing through megaphones

As they protest through the streets

The same street that claimed my life

Police brutality has been going on for years!

How does one badge

instill so much fear in us

The same badge worn to

            Honor, Serve, and Protect

            Kills, Destroys, and Neglects 

My tragedy is my legacy

No Justice No Peace

            I CAN’T BREATHE

In memory of George Floyd