On The Day Assata Died
On the day Assata died
a mass murderer spoke
to an empty room
about why it’s OK to kill people.
He was wearing a two-dollar button
with a link to a video
that he said would show everyone
why he needed to keep killing
men and women and children and
non-binary folks in the name of justice.
There was nobody left in the room
to look at his video
but don’t get it twisted;
they had filled that same chamber
many times before and done nothing
to stop the killing
because in the end
that’s not what they’re there for.
They sit in that room
day after day
year after year
to make us believe there are rules,
to cover the hellmouth with politeness.
But Assata died one thousand three hundred miles
from her home place
because in the end
they always let the killer speak.
///
26 September 2025
Charlottesville VA