Purple Decency
many good lines stalled
like
fuck the
fascists doesn’t cut it this time
how
am I feeling?
less
crawling up the wall more
good bits violet hues
tasteless fool who
loves big
& without struggle
can you make this year
taste right?
I’d abandon myself
in a second
but last night
you said
justice was not
for us
it was for
other people
& the future
I would prefer to die ahead of you
my body between yours and the guard
from the private firm, muzzle
hard against the velvet of our hair
smooth from makeshift hairdressing
in the biggest room we occupy
banners hung ceiling to floor
shining chamomile in morning
ochre in night, redblue in sirens.
But if the occupation does not end in fire
and instead we face a slow death
from chemicals, the decay between the walls
which turns our lungs to chalk, our bodies
to mutiny and our memories to acid,
I would prefer that you be first to die.
Claire Sosienski Smith
Claire Sosienski Smith is based in London and spends a lot of time thinking about poetry and prison abolition. She tweets @CLAIRESOS.