Tales Mumia Told Me
To Scott Norman
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Two epigrams of mine-
Noone becomes a hero by living a long life.
August 18th was the scheduled date.
In my Poetry, it remains the scheduled date.
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After the exe cut i on
After the axe e cut i on
After the electro cutting
There was a silence
as though Jahweh must cough
before he smote.
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Maureen Faulkner may sleep well tonight
(though Shannon Faulkner won’t)
Albert Sabo may sleep well tonight
Thomas Ridge may sleep well tonight
The rest of us
who can feel
anger and fear
anger and fear
anger and fear
and remember who Reverend Martin Neihmoller was
may not touch
sleep
while the earth vibrates
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If they come for me at night
they will come for you in the morning-
Kevin Brown
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The FOP has it’s white-faced spokesmen MEN
screech the need for this death, for his death.
The CP looks around for another flag to wave
choose whatever the FOP is against,
it will be a safe choice
Pam and all the other Africas
will tire of seeking justie
will seek a safe place to go
will call themselves a Militia
and then they wil
be left alone
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Some Poets will scream Apocalyptic
Some Poets will cry for a dead Saint
Some Poets will merely cry
and try to find another trial to
write and writhe about,
maybe the Orphans Melendez….
or whoever is on trial now
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A Little blood goes a long way-
Nancy Niemczek (remembering demonstrations)
Myron + Nancy, Robin + Terry, Bob Smith + others
After the death
not by crucifixion
but due to a fiction
what used to be Penn’s city
(he cast it off,
from his seat in the clouds)
what used to be Penn’s city
(before he saw what it became)
what used to be Penn’s city
lay in a big fat fog of silence
a frog of silence
a wreath of mourning
like someone important died,
Angelo Bruno, Mickey Mantle,
or Elvis Presley.
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Light rain fell in stages
almost like Jahweh crying
Jahweh crying crying
later would rifles cry
guns also might weep
and blood would be warm and worn
on many, many streets
some that rarely knew blood
some that rarely dreamed blood
some that hardly knew….
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To be fair
very little of this action
had anything to do with Mumia
To be fair
there was the heat and, always,
general air of accepted violence.
To be fair
the reasons did not matter
to the newly dead.
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Come join Uncle John’s Band
by the riverside
got some things to talk about
down among the rising tide-
Grateful Dead
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After the death
a group in silence gathered gathered
gathered outside the governor’s mansion
on Second street in Harrisburg
cowled in dark but not in black
on second street in Harrisburg
Standing in a knife-like silence
all day
then left as rain fell on the
Susquehanna
come mournfully dancing in
come mournfully dancing in
Not a word was said
but many were heard.
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Mumia has planned for August 18th, 1995
for many years.
He has to.
We all have to dream,
to get through our lives.
our lives where dreams go to die.
yet,
the time and trials will go on
and though someone should spite the devil
and tell the truth
noone will
noone will
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it remains a sad and lonely time
and the marches continue
in Berlin, London. Harrisburg and
Philadelphia
and Mumia gets older
and time has reversed again
and it’s really 1959
and things are just beginning to happen
and noone knows it
and this time
this time
this time
we will, finally, get the revolution right.
Bob Small 8-15-95 from 8-3-95
robertthesmall 