In the spirit of peace,
Patrick Henry once cried:
“Give me liberty or give me death!”
In the spirit of peace,
he was eventually granted his request.
how true it is---wonders
never seem to cease.
Where there’s peace,
there’s no need for protest;
there’s no instant
in this country’s history
where it has peacefully gone into war---
Rather consistently waging war
in the name of peace.
it is said that history
can’t be changed---repeated maybe;
emphatically teaching its lessons:
“Give me liberty or give me death!” So be it!
“No justice, no peace!” So be it!
So has it been in the history of protest:
peaceful protest by the oppressed
has always been responded to
with peaceful violence by the oppressors.
Nowhere in history---
has protestation between the oppressed
and the oppressor---ever ended peacefully.
Today, when the angered oppressed come face to face
with combat ready oppressors, peaceful protest ceases to be
a viable strategy---least we too, desire the fate of Patrick Henry.