After The Demolition, Before The Eviction – A Poem by Leslie Dianne

Submitted by Leslie Dianne

After they demolished
the buildings
Next to our tenements
I say to Kwame and Javi
we should
leave the city

it will continue
without us
shrieking, screaming
wailing, crying
for help
the stones
pile up
and the men
dig deeper
and deeper
looking for
treasure
beneath the concrete
shaking the surface
of the ground
until it cracks
and bleeds

when the foundation
crater is done
we are careful
not to stumble into
the abyss
of progress
of gentrification
of their
tomorrow
that leaves
us with less

About the Poet

Leslie Dianne is a poet, novelist, screenwriter, playwright and performer. Her work has been acclaimed internationally at the Harrogate Fringe Festival in Great Britain, The International Arts Festival in Tuscany, Italy and at La Mama in NYC. Her poems are forthcoming in S/tick, Rue Scribe and RAW Journal of Arts