IN WILLIAMSBURG
In Williamsburg we learn
How freedom ours was earned,
At least for lucky born
Of alabaster skin.
Their independence claimed
By declaration famed
That Founding Fathers framed,
Though was still had to win.
But if from continent
Of African descent,
Whatever effort spent
Was not for likes of you.
Four score and seven years
Still had to bear in tears.
And even then, as feared,
Was too good to be true.
For then came Ku Klux Klan,
Jim Crow and other bans.
A century they spanned
Of false equality.
Took lots of suffering
Then Martin Luther King
To promised freedom bring
Into reality.
About Ray Gallucci: I am a Professional Engineer who has been writing poetry since 1990. I am an incorrigible rhymer, tending toward the skeptical/cynical regarding daily life. I have been fortunate to have been published in poetry magazines and on-line journals such as NUTHOUSE, MOTHER EARTH INTERNATIONAL, FEELINGS/POETS’ PAPER, MÖBIUS (when Jean Hull Herman published), PABLO LENNIS, MUSE OF FIRE, SO YOUNG!, THE AARDVARK ADVENTURER, POETIC LICENSE, THUMBPRINTS, UNLIKELY STORIES, BIBLIOPHILOS, FULLOSIA PRESS, NOMAD’S CHOIR, HIDDEN OAK, PABLO LENNIS, POETSESPRESSO, SOUL FOUNTAIN, WRITER’S JOURNAL, ATLANTIC PACIFIC PRESS, DERONDA REVIEW, LYRIC, THE STORYTELLER, WRITE ON! and DANA LITERARY SOCIETY.