Is this really what it means to be American? 

To say: Only certain people can be who they are. 

To start wars. 

To cause pain. 

To put others beneath you. 

I close the windows

Lock the doors

Turn off the lights

I don’t ever want to leave this room.

I am tired of drowning

In a world

That has never prepared me to swim.

It's 12:34 AM on July 5th, 2025 and I still see fireworks going off in the sky.

I hear the booms, the bangs, the commotion of endless fireworks

going on for hours

still raging

on a brand new day.

“Harris is a communist,” My grandfather protests. 

“Better a communist than a felon,” My father shoots back. 

Fight

Fight back with your words not your aggression

Fight back with love not hate

Fight back with joy not drama

When magnets are placed the right way

They connect

When they're placed the wrong way

They use everything in their power to stay away

From each other

They resist

With a force

Resist.

Intransitive verb:  to exert force in opposition

in the halls, we lean against the bulletin boards

and whisper of the latest news, last night's breaking, articles snagged

in the moments before leaving for school. lots of adults

think we are too young to understand