POETRY: Aggrieved
Posted Apr 19, 2007

Aggrieved


With bewilderment the Arabs view
America’s persistent, unflinching bias for Israel

As though a conflict seen in Manichean terms
Righteous folk against the evil sons of Ishmael

The tale indeed is incomplete
Ignoring an immense amount of facts

The incessant victimization of the Palestinians
Imprisonment, land expropriation, closures, racial discrimination

Truly, the victim is turned into the oppressor
Falsely depicted as the incorrigible villain

The sin is a yearning for freedom
And liberation from occupation and oppression

Too many have shed their blood in a saga
Of untold suffering, extreme pain

And presently, the dictum is not to recognize
A government produced by popular mechanism

The victims must renounce the right to self-defense
To dream of the redemption of trodden-upon rights

Concession after concession must be made
Without guarantees of reciprocation

America’s folly is unbalanced policy
Possibly paving the way for immense suffering and loss

An appeal is made to a sense of fairness
With deep roots in the American character

And also that interests are endangered
By an orientation that is profoundly slanted

Interests and moral imperatives are well served
By polices that honestly recognize the “others’” rights