2 Poems by Shakeema Smalls

rape kit

“(The hung juror) said no one was hurt and that it would be different if the victim were found in the river with her throat slit,” (Morgan Myers, Sun Gazette, November 6th, 2013)

FIND:

hysterectomy, or
annulment
camel toe. menthols.
kool moe dee sweatshirt
lap scarf
cover charge for The Scars He Left On Your Uterus.
1 nite. lost lighter.
the, ”Guide to Negro Phonetics for Public Defenders.”
orgasm osmosis. Did you ask for it?
alopecia a la cigarette burn.
bay rum. again: Did you want it?
evidence of forced rear entry. change locks.
inner labia. only responsive to zydeco.
waldo
3 years & 7 months’ worth of dust
statute of limitations
because you could have not wanted it, more.
mistrial.

summertime

-after b.

of epidemic love
& low-hanging fruit
they said, make chaste women
of us
of hot grit($)
turkey melt depression
deep-sugar, red lips & loosies
my face against your breasts
heartbeat congregation
carryout tenders thinking
about you & sin
in the corner of my sight
forever twenty-one
pink lotion n senegalese twists
my nappy edges
flat my square hips
hard, untranslatable
& Eucharist

Shakeema Smalls is a writer from Georgetown, SC by way of Brooklyn, NY. Her work has appeared in various publications including Tidal Basin Review, Blackberry: A Magazine, Kweli, and The Feminist Wire, among others.