FOREVER, ALLELUIA
despite being a bridge
between cultures
a monster
even on my best behavior
and a person not understood by many
I will not stop singing
I sing Alleluia, forever
this Black girl joy
Black boy joy
Black joy
cannot be contained.
I sing Alleluia, forever
as hard as the world has tried
as hard as the world still tries
we are not going anywhere
I sing Alleluia, forever
when everything is said and done
when the cops
politicians
and prisons
have done their best to break us
I will still sing
I sing Alleluia, forever
we bend
we tremble
we sway
and we buckle
but we are not defeated
I sing Alleluia, forever.
at the end of the day
I sing praise for this skin that wraps me up
and keeps my magic close.
For this skin that carries our magic:
I sing and I dance
and I love and laugh.
I sing Alleluia, forever.
Forever
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