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Society at risk
committing crimes of indifference and apathy

clutching purses on subways
while sitting next to a cycle of poverty

sipping on $5 lattes at hipster coffee shops
shopping at upscale grocery stores with decadent chocolates and wine
living in the comfort of a high rise and a secured parking garage
turning away from the suffering that lives four blocks down the street

Society at risk, risking our youth
to dilapidated schools
broken systems
and violence

Locking kids up for
addictions
truancy
rebellion
and emotional distress

At risk societies, putting profit before people
dealing Gucci watches and Louis Vuittons
prostituting consumerism as worth
little girl locked up
seven months
she knew it was wrong
thought a purse could validate her worth
And while the judge and jury deliberated over her crime
nobody asked what was stolen from her

Society
I sentence you.

© Natasha Burrows