Conscious Covid

382 total words    

2 minutes of reading

 
 

I’ve been to many places

And traveled to many spaces

But of all my cases,

Your country’s are filled with the most disgrace

Cause in the US, even a virus will discriminate by race

 

Comorbidities have made Black bodies my primary resting place

Just face the honest facts

The cost of living’s a little too high when you’re living Black

Can’t afford, to stay home when your work is essential

Can’t afford, life-saving treatment when your life’s inconsequential

The disproportionate infection is not accidental

 

The corporate invasion of Black neighborhoods and pollution of their air

Has clear implications on their ability, to fight me

Warehouse fumes enter their lungs

To help me kill them off way quicker than guns

Funds of top polluters are so important to you,

You still allow toxic waste and mass deforestation

In the midst of a virus that attacks your respiration

This nation, is so far away from “Restoration”

So far away from making my curve flat

Because you believe it’s okay if it only hurts Blacks

 

And although I am your enemy, I must say I don’t encourage that

Because the thing about me is I always turn back

The first shall be the last and the last shall die first

So when I wipe out the Blacks, the whole country is cursed

 

But truth be told your fate’s been sealed before I landed

It’s too late I’m speaking candid,

But humans are so predictable, it’s just how I planned it

You only care about you, and that’s exactly why I’ve expanded

You saw the death early and you could’ve sent aid

But you saw it was in China so you quickly looked away

Thinking you’d be safe if you just stayed out the way

But that only made it certain I wouldn’t fade away

 

You’re as strong as the weak and as healthy as the ill

So when you let others die, it’s yourself you’re bound to kill

All health on earth is one, and I will continue to spread,

More loss, more sorrow, more people that’s dead

More tears, lost years, more trauma and strife

Til you get in your head

That the only way to survive is to protect EVERY life

  • Oderachukwu Arinzechukwu Ugwu

    Oderachukwu Ugwu is a senior at Cornell University majoring in Biology and Society with a minor in Global Health. Born in Detroit, Michigan, to Nigerian immigrants, Oderachukwu is passionate about researching and creating innovative solutions to address health and educational disparities around the world.

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