I Can’t Breathe

#BlackLivesMatter

Photo by Obi Onyeador on Unsplash

A poem, by Fọlábòmí Àmọ̀ó

I can’t breathe;
Not because,
I’m in the hospital.

Attached to a machine,
Hoping;
For a miracle.

I can’t breathe;
Not because I’m drowning,
Or gasping for air.

I can’t breathe;
Only because of my colour.

My voice,
Deaf to those,
Who see it on my skin.

I can’t breathe;
On the floor.
Feeling the weight,
On my back.

I can’t breathe,
Even though I want to.

Fighting;
Begging for my life,
With all I have.

I can’t breathe;
The tears are falling now.
I can see the end has come.

My voice,
Fading out;
To nothingness.

The place,
It has always been.