Take back this costume,
take back this mask –
I don’t want to play the oppressor
anymore

Take back these petty thoughts,
these grudging,.measuring thoughts –
I refuse to play along,
being a pawn,
my steps bedogged
by haunted looks to right and left,
hounds of rejection nipping at my heels

Let me evict the oppressor’s hand
from all my views, from all my actions,
let me step forth humbly
to take the brave hand
of those who, day by day,
throw off projections marking them oppressed,
showing me, as well,
how to get free.

©Wendy Mulhern
June 27, 2020