Where Do You Draw The Line?

by

At what point did you draw the line?

Was it before or after you crossed over it?

Was it on the way to Gerry Mander’s place,

or before grandfather’s clause dug into your conscience?

Like two kids on the playground,

did you redraw it every time they got closer to you

or did you draw it underneath words

used to force them back?

Did you curve it and put a dot underneath

to question the credentials of those

who had the “nerve” to cross over?

Or did you just ram the line down their throats

and use the point at the end to deny them access?

Did you make the line disappear when

they had something you wanted,

or was it their minds that were playing tricks

when you handed them a line

and they sneezed away their land?

Olupero R. Aiyenimelo is a writer, poet, activist and researcher living in San Antonio.