National Poetry Month: Cries for Justice

Today, as part of our ongoing celebration of National Poetry Month, we are featuring two poems, one by Angela E. McKnight from the collection Freedom Poetry, and one by N.S. Martinez.

The Innocent Cry For Freedom

By Angela E. McKnight
 

It’s an awful cry, and it echoes in the pipeline.

The innocent man’s cry for freedom,

It’s a terrible sound.

It pierces the eardrum,

and the heart.

Then it tears at your soul,

while watching him through prison bars,

and as he grows old.

Everyday is a cry for freedom,

but justice does not respond.

Then everyday there is a cry for justice,

until his freedom he has won.

Each Day

By N.S. Martinez


Each day

A new face

A new name

A new story... yet unsettlingly the same

Each day

A life’s hope waits

A life’s journey is stilled

A life’s future is stolen... non-refundable

Each day

We decide to care

We determine to act

We can share... a voice for justice

Each day

A new face

A new name

A new story... can begin again