Identity Theft

Don’t you dare
try to show or wear
the Jewish star
to draw attention to your cause,
and presume they are the same,
because they’re not!

And don’t compare
those forced to wear
the yellow badge
with those of you who choose, not to take your shot,
and say, you are victims too,
because you’re not!

Using words like ‘genocide’
and ‘crimes against humanity’
in the same breath
as ‘anti-vaxers’ liberty’,
makes mockery
of those who died.

Maybe it’s just an innocent error
of which you are the bearer,
or a blind spot
in your cross-cultural vision
that caused this collision,
but I don’t care—
it can still pave the road
to hatred all the same.

The Shield of David,
symbol of God’s protection,
has been our seal and our affection,
for centuries
before Hitler perverted its meaning
and turned it into something vile and demeaning.
It’s been used for synagogues and art,
jewelry and monuments,
and emblems from the heart,
even on our homeland’s flag.
You can’t take it as your own,
because,
it’s already ours.

You wouldn’t portray yourselves
as JC on the cross
or use residential schools as your gloss,
or swipe slavery from the blacks
to plaster over all the cracks
and bolster up your case,
so why do that to us?

Don’t think you can escape unscathed,
like some baby being bathed,
because the next time
you breach the peace,
I’ll report you to the police,
for identity theft!

And to those of you who say,
Don’t give oxygen to their display,
I reply,
Should we just wait
until they come to stamp our fate,
when it will be too late
to act?
Or should we
trust the powers that be
to protect us and keep us free?
We did that once,
and look where that
got us.
And besides,
after they come for us,
guess who’s next?

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