If only they were obedient,
then the benzene, chloroprene,
aniline, and burnt-down
churches with spray-painted, proud
swastikas etched on the outside would matter—
then maybe their lives

would matter.
But Fomorsa Ethane Cracker,
Denka/Dupont, Cornerstone Cyanide,
and promised salaries
to the local population
matter too—
waste pits have to be dug
by someone.

The unborn matter,
the born black, gay, immigrant,
womyn burn their temper
huff their anger, split cracks
in the sidewalks, purge apologies
beneath elemental shadows
and cook dark roux
with volatile organic compounds.

All is fine:
rusted-ornate windows,
chemical cumulus clouds,
Tumor-ridden circling crows, moss-less trees,
and the fear of car backfires
create a quintessential neighborhood
in the La Place area.

“We are listening,”
says the commissioner,
“But, your child is sick,
because you people are known
for unhealthy eating habits and
for refusing to walk.”

“We will address this at a later time.”

# # #

Siobhain (McGuinness) Lash is a poet and philosopher, raised between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland and Reno, Nevada, USA. She received her B.A. in English with an emphasis in Creative Writing, Philosophy, and Psychology with a specialization in research from the University of Nevada, Reno(2015). She received her M.A. in Philosophy at Tulane University(2017) and currently resides in New Orleans with her husband and daughter. Her poems have been published in Blotterature Literary Magazine, Poets Reading the News, and The American Journal of Poetry. Through the English Honor Society, Sigma Tau Delta, she has presented her poetry collections at five conferences, and one conference through National Collegiate Honors Council. She is currently a philosophy instructor.

Photo: Curioso Photography