by Raymond Nat Turner, Poet in Residence at Black Agenda Report
Water is life…and
Saliva’s even in short supply…
for drum-tight mouths, sandpaper throats.
Yodeling bellies cave in on spines,
as evil scents of sewage and death float in,
Remaking an island into a spreadsheet.
Cell towers, power lines tumbled like
legos—electricity’s a distant memory—
Refrigerated insulin is useless.
Oxygen tanks ran out—
Generators and motorboats are music
where desperation’s setting in…
Celebrity charity’s touching—
but, not the billions needed…
Cuba’s been ready with doctors—
Venezuela offered oil,
Jamaica wants to jump in—
Even earthquake-ravaged
Mexico lined up supplies!
But, an embargo of greed,
masked in maritime law,
Blocks arteries of foreign-
flagged ships, from pumping
Blood to Puerto Rico’s body—
Food, fuel, water, medicines—
once again exposing the
Bankruptcy of capitalism…
Is there a method to
Boss Tweet’s madness, his
Shock and awe? His
0 empathy, blaming
Victims, as animals and people perish?
Cruel, callous debt sermons as
His sordid career floats on bankruptcy?
Maybe there’s a method to
his five day fusillade of
Tweets at NFL kneelers and
NBA War House-no shows?
Maybe fire and fury,
Killing 25 million Koreans, makes better
Business sense than delivering food and water
Saving 3.5 million Puerto Ricans?
Perhaps “it’s business, not personal—“
Regime change in Venezuela
trumping diaper change
for Boricuan babies?
Isn’t Katrina-style gnawing of
Wall Street’s Pound of flesh
off island bones elegant?
Succulent FEMA cost-sharing;
Juicy Prepa electrical grid;
Tender teacher pensions;
Commonwealth shish kabob
Served on storm skewers to bondholder,
bankster, disaster capitalist contractor/
sub-contractor jackals—how refined!
And for dessert:
Puerto Rican pudding—
Minus Puerto Ricans—served on
Golf course, luxury hotel, high-rise
Post-hurricane playground for the
Rich parasite, sponge cake—yum…
Don’t Blame Maria—blame
Hurricane IMF; Hurricanes World Bank,
Goldman-Sachs, Citbank… Blame
Hurricane Financial Management Oversight Board;
Hurricane Taxation Without Representation—
Begging the question:
“Is they is, or is they ain’t citizens?”
Debt cancellation/Reparation/Self-determination Now!