Ultimatum

It's not the gun pressed to our heads,
it's not the knife pressed into our throats,
it's the religious bickering, the classist rivalry,
it's the societal backlash, the fear and oppression.

Ferguson, Fairborn, New York City,
#BlackLivesMatter, Leelah Alcorn, Je Suis Charlie,
the bombing at the NAACP building in Colorado -
is this the 1960's? Have we lost our ever fucking minds?
People dying needlessly every day, over what?

Oh he looks dangerous, he's carrying a pop gun -
Oh he's a large black man, must be dangerous -
Oh they made fun of someone who doesn't exist, blow them up -

I'm fairly certain your saviors didn't die for you just so you
could hate on someone, discriminate against someone, kill someone.

It isn't that we're paranoid about someone killing us -
It isn't that we're afraid that someone will discriminate us -
It's not that we don't love that you hate us -
we're just tired of standing on our ancestors' graves,
hearing you shout poison, same poison from the past
just in all new slang.

So here's what we're going to do -
throw down our guns, throw away the hate, get rid of the pain,
feed, clothe, and shelter the homeless
take care of the sick and needy
make sure, no matter what "sin" they have, your neighbor is ok -
you weren't put on this earth to judge, so why are you -
the sooner we learn to love one another, the sooner the pain will end -

So what do you say, stop hating and just be friends?
No?
We'll exist without you.