but there ain't nothing lil
about a sixteen year old being the first one
to walk into the newly opened doors
of the black panther party office
and join.
Your young life
was a series of firsts.
first to join.
first treasurer.
first to get killed.
and only seventeen years old.
on the day you were killed
folks from watts to chicago to newark
were bringing the justice of fire to the streets
for the killing of martin luther king
just two days earlier.
but no monuments exist to you
you who had to be badder than bad
to be so young
to be so willing to stand for your people
to be so determined to live by the adage
it is better to die on your feet than live on your knees.
no monuments are named after you
but you do have a park;
the park where free huey rallies were held.
let the monuments have their monuments.
i believe the park is nobler.
buildings decay.
buildings collapse
buildings get rotted out by the misery of the inhabitants
buildings get passed hand to hand like whores or dollars
but nothing can stop the grass from growing
and nothing
absolutely nothing
can stop the sun
from shining on the grass.
