Liberty


A Statue by Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi

Displayed  in an alien harbor,

a difficult woman, blindfolded,

less able to speak than Philomel

deaf, unable to read Emma Lazarus,

a difficult woman confirming inequity,

unable to speak of abolition,

torch on the right, law tablets on the left

which  once gripped broken shackles,

standing on chains like the Mother of God,

a difficult woman, this Lady Liberty,

an oxidized omen, promising naught more

or less than a welcoming

for them not for us,

for them not for us,

promising mercy,

perpetuating misery,

a difficult woman

perspiring

parfum de sang.



Jerry W. Ward, Jr.            June 10, 2019

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