FICTION WINNER: The Burden Of Privilege

BY PETER BLANCHARD

I hold the burden of privilege

A seed my white ancestors planted
What do I know about the ghetto?
The struggles of so many cannot be seen out my window

I come from the land of dairy farms and green meadows

Where racist white God-fearing Christians roam free

And Fox News rules the TV
Is this what our forefathers dreamed?

A country so manipulated by think tanks and plasma screens

Do we use social media or does it use us?
Our lives wrapped around what our friends discuss

Our privacy’s been cooked
Our faces have been booked

Our rights are overlooked

My space has been took

The work of the C.I.A.
Is now carried out by Google
Searches and seizures

Available at your leisure

Mediacracy has hindered our ability to analyze

And see beyond the hype, half-truths and whole lies.

They transmit fear 24 hours a day

They don’t sleep, so how can I?
We watch Glee to forget about misery
The Jersey Shore to forget about war
MTV to forget about poverty
Modern Family to forget about family
These aren’t just simple distractions, oh no
These are MIND CONTRACTIONS, knowledge subtractions
TV cult factions which then lead to inaction
By avoiding the problem, we amplify it
Instead of speaking out, we keep quiet
Wouldn’t want to start a riot
Nah, F*** THAT S**T MAN!
I’M READY TONIGHT!
Let’s do it, the time is right
No more weekly meetings, no more discussions
No more fundraisers, no more disruptions
No more lectures, no more presentations
No more open mic nights, it’s time to fight
Can’t you see we’re just preaching to the choir?
Let’s make these bastards stand trial.
Make ‘em reconcile our role in the world
Take the money from the banks and give it back to the poor
Use our power for good instead of 2 endless wars
I mean what are we fighting for?
It’s time to wake up, answer the call
Take to the streets, see the writing on the wall
Some say it’s just words and that’s all
But it takes a mic and a voice to make the empire fall