A View of "To Brother Gil, Regarding the Revolution"

(We can be the change, if we choose to see that we have that power. We can be the revolution, if only we choose to be....)

We almost lost the revolution, dear Brother Gil.
We let it pass by without a second look
because it wasn't ridin' dirty down the block
in a triple black Mercedes E-Class with chrome rims,
cracked steering column, punched out dashboard,
and a 9mm semi in the passenger seat.

We almost missed the revolution

because it wasn't sponsored by

Grand Patron Platinum, Phillies Blunt Cigars,

or Air Jordan Retro Three kicks,
keeping our youth willingly
broke, self-medicated, numb
to the fact that self imposed slavery
is far more shameful and degrading
than the forced labor of our forebears.

We missed it because the revolution

didn't fist bump us on the corner,
look us in the eye, give us a pound
and greet us with twisted platitudes like,
"S'up bitch?” or "How you doin' my nigger?"
Verbal assaults cunningly disguised as affection.

Dear Brother Gil, the revolution must be televised

to make sure we don't miss it again, hosted by someone
charming, canny, and compelling enough to convince all that
Tony Montana is not a role model.
Big Meech, Larry Hoover, all the name checked
American Gangsters are not role models.
Nene, Shaunie, Tami, and all the rest of
the “real” housewives are not role models.
Hell, most of them aren't even wives.

The revolution must be televised, Brother Gil,

so it can reach the so called revolutionaries
the ones so lost chasing the spotlight,
pushing egos around for all to marvel
they can't even see the irony of having
chrome rims stolen off their chauffeur driven Escalalde
while marching for the rights of the poor,
or shamelessly stealing from the constituents
who blindly picked them at their own peril,
justifying their injustice by calling for shared sacrifice,
as they shut the world down one step at a time,
and remain insulated from their supporters,
immune and unaware of how impoverished citizens
on the other side of the exclusive gated communities suffer.

The revolution must be televised, Brother Gil.

Broadcast On Demand, made available on Hulu,
turned into a free iPhone app or the next viral hit on YouTube
so everyone can see politicians coldly offer up prayers
that the president’s children be fatherless and his wife a widow,
casually say they don’t want to make black people’s lives better,
callously remark that homosexuality is akin to lying down with dogs,
then offer up fake apologies and preposterous explanations,
disingenuousness flying from their throats like fleas
infesting the world with their hatred and intolerance.

The revolution must be televised, Brother Gil
so that we, the 99%, can see the faces of the 1%
who can't see us because they are too busy turning their backs,
and the 1% can see the 99% whose selflessness and hard work
give them the luxury and privilege they jealously and selfishly defend.

The revolution must be televised, Brother Gil
so that everyone can see the tears shed by a mother
who has lost her baby when EMS failed to come in time,
and count the tears not shed by those responsible for EMS not coming,
coldly brushed off with a terse, "No comment," from a man
guarded by a well paid security detail quick to respond to his every need.

We almost lost the revolution, Brother Gil.

I plead with you, please reconsider.
To reach all, teach all, keep us all from being
further desensitized and paralyzed
the revolution must be televised.

(c) 2011 - Tracey Morris, All Rights Reserved

I heard a commercial yesterday from a local furniture store
advertising their "annual MLK sale," complete with discounts on
TVs with the purchase of a mattress or sofa. Have we really lost the dream?
Has it really become only about commerce? Only if we let it....
(Comic drawn by Cory Thomas, creator of, "Watch Your Head.")