Counting Descent

by Clint Smith

“I recognize no dichotomy between art and protest.” —Ralph Ellison

It is the irony of a ship burning at sea, surrounded by the very thing that could save us.

My jump shot be spending too much time in the library.

do you know what it means for your existence to be defined by someone else’s intentions?

Mom said that my head was big because I needed enough room to read all the books in the library, which seemed like infinity,

I celebrate every breath, tried to start counting them so I wouldn’t take each one for granted. I wish I could give my breath to the boys who had theirs taken, but I’ve stopped counting because it feels like there are too many boys & not enough breath to go around.

They want people to remember that they once existed beyond this place, that they still do.

That books showed you that you weren’t alone in your pain? You talk about humanity, but what is more human than seeing yourself in another?

I wonder how many things the world has deemed fact that are actually just presumptions made by men in robes or glasses

Today I Bought a Book for You

I have always used words to try and convince the world that I am worth something.