Victory is Promised

scan the room at the head of this table each and every one of you, refuse to meet my eyes. but i pledge my tongue to truth speaking on your deaf ears so He may use me to facilitate your warning. we know who you are put money on where you’ll end up so selfishly i’ll wedge myself into your stories so He may use me to facilitate your warning. because we know your hearts are cold and blind your fingers drip of rubble and iron we know who you are the ones who let us fall to our knees skin scraped to the pavements in a jungle concrete the ones who forced tears blinding mist out palm-sized canisters the ones who heard whimpers and groans drops of sweat as they slapped the ground jingling silver cuffs that left a stain the ones who choose rings of smoke winds of explosions, parades of starvation i’ll spend my fifteen lengthy minutes on trial to impose that you bear witness so that you can’t say you didn’t know so that I can say someone let you know so that i’m gifted to see the celebration that follows in those gardens whose promises were fulfilled so i’ll use my fifteen lengthy minutes to let you know about anas to let you know about saleh to let you know about hind to let you know about reem to let you know about the schools to let you know about the hospitals to let you know about the masjids to let you know about the churches to let you know about the kids to let you know about the mothers to let you know about the fathers in case you didn’t know and in case I didn’t have another opportunity to ensure that I could facilitate your warning. board of trustees i saw my marah grieve her own limbs so yes i can look you in the eye. i can sit here and find your iris like the next breath i can look at myself in the mirror i can sleep at night because I for one, can look you in the eye. our footsteps haunt the tiles our echoes haunt the walls our memory haunts the time your clocks running out of breath every last touch of justice puts up a fight watch every curtain call every wall come undone because victory is promised it is so ordered. hadeeqa

Hadeeqa Arzoo Malik was the SJP president and student leader at CCNY. She was suspended for one year for protesting the genocide in Gaza and CUNY’s complicity and for standing in solidarity with Palestine liberation.