Songs of Anisha
“Ken Saro-Wiwa Street,”
by Chiedu Ezeanah
Death, the bloodloot of a rampaging army,
breaks upon secret thoughts in starving tows.
Death empties the thought and the town.
Death in the anxious wait.
Death in the poisonous shade.
Death in the trenches in the bedroom.
Death in the gallows in the courtroom.
Alfred Rewane, Musa Yar-Adua, Bola Ige,
Bagauda Kaltho, Victor Nwakwo,
Harry Marshall, Amasoari Dokubo, Agbeyegbe…
Fates out of the reach of hate
names out of the reach of dates
besiege us in time of grace
to sing their glory in unjust Time…
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