ERASING MY MEMORIES

mutabaruka then you moved me
to take up arms against apartheid
the killings in soweto, in sharpeville
the bombing of exiles in zimbabwe
the bombings in mozambique
the bombings in zambia and elsewhere

peter tosh you moved me to tears
moving me to fight against apartheid
that callous jailing of nelson mandela
the hanging of little talked of poet benjamin moloise
the mysterious death of steve bantu biko
the shameful slaying of samora machel
the deaths of all heroic sons and daughters

how can i forget dennis brutus
choose to forget ruth first
choose to forget umkhonto we sizwe
separate me from that struggle
that african struggle for freedom

these attacks on so-called foreigners
the smell of burning human flesh
those all too familiar photos
the infamous necklacing of fellow victims
fellow victims of poverty, ignorance and disease

the shocking violence on fellow africans
the displacement of fellow citizens
europe dismantles her borders
we slavishly cling to colonial legacies
who alienates me from my struggle
who seeks to erase my memories