Candace Nicholas-Lippman - GUILTY

We
Find the defendant
GUILTY

Wait
Did you just say
Guilty?

Nah, see
What's interesting
Is this verdict
Was placed upon me
Before the very beginning
Of my existence

It was
The color
Of my skin
The neighborhood I grew up in
The food stamps
Welfare system
Broken home
And second hand education
Life
Dealt me
An unjust hand
I
Am the token
Easily charged
With fabricated crimes
Coerced into guilty pleas
Threatened and bullied
Your
Presumptions
Made me susceptible
To racial violence
Wrongful convictions
And unfair treatment
Sometimes

I imagine

What the verdict
Would be if
I a White man
But
I was born
At a disadvantage
My melanin
A beautiful
Gift
From God
Was cursed
By your
Bigotry
My
Blackness
Has always
Been a target
Viewed
As an animal
That must be caged
So you create
A system
That automatically
Sets
Me up
To lose
So let me be clear your honor

I was "guilty"
Before I even walked in this courtroom

Written by:
Candace Lippman

Publisher:
Lyrics © O/B/O DistroKid

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