I wrote this poem a few years ago, but in light of recent events, it suddenly has become relevant again.
Litany of the Black Madonna
by DGFrom the forest of Bois Caiman,
on Haiti's tropical isle,
to the plains of Poland,
Our Lady fights battles against the oppressors.
A symbol of Hope,
Comfort to the dying,
Champion of the poor,
She shelters those who toil,
under Her mantle.
She is...
the secret buried under the Earth,
burrowing Her way into the heart of the Church.
the slave brought over in the Middle Passage,
forced to bear the pain of the lash.
the courageous woman of color,
who defiantly refuses to sit at the back of the bus.
the scars on Her cheeks are like that of a girl, whose
clitoris is mutilated by the slashing pain of patriarchy.
the grieving mother, whose son is being tortured,
in a Latin American prison.
the single mother who works two jobs to support her kids,
loving and gentle but ready to give them a whoopin',
if they don't toe the mark.
the sister killed for daring to put aside her veil or be educated.
the revolutionary toppling a tyrannical regime,
the hammer that struck down the Berlin Wall.
the forgotten bride, pushed into the margins of history and scripture.
She is the voice of all women,
She reaches out,
and takes us to the Other Side.
