Freeing Britain
-for Jo Cox

The range of fire can be
googled on the internet
measured in hacksaw strokes
barrel cut from heating pipes

with his gardening hands
the quiet man
raised green thumb in air flat handed
arm stretched beyond reason

coincidentally it was Ramadan
when he approached the library
“shush!” they said “it’s a library”
on the steps where she stood
then staggered

tension
waits
stabs
hates
who’s traitor now?

blessed English air
your tired customs
rooted in dead heroes
heroines and god saved queens

you fought old wars
for this to kill
but one of us
with foul mouthed blade
handgun home made

the end of tethered man
racism festering
in austerity and unafforded debt

the broken net
through which hate squeezed
inflated by today’s Enoch,
Nigel the Mosely headline grabbing
cliche against humanity

as citizen and the like
you dug her grave
and stripped charity
from our soul

so here’s your country’s back
turned toward you
and your thugged up
island’s rage

19-6-16
md