Mustafa Santiago Ali
Dr. Mustafa Santiago Ali is the Executive Vice President of Conservation & Justice for the National Wildlife Federation (NWF), former Interim Chief of Programs at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), and Instructor at American University. He is the Founder and CEO of Revitalization Strategies. He also serves as a commissioner for The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS). He is an award-winning writer and poet focused on social justice. Dr. Ali is frequently seen on television, including appearances on MSNBC, ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, VICE, FUSE, BET, National Geographic, Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, and Democracy NOW! Mustafa is also a regular guest on Roland Martin Unfiltered, Black News Channel, Tavis Smiley Show, The Dean Obeidallah Show, and many others…
Editor's Note: This poem is the 100th in our Democracy and Hope Series. This series will highlight hopeful aspects about our Democracy using various genres including poems
This poem honors the life of Raul Manuel Grijalva, who served a member of Congress from Arizona.. He represented Arizona's 3rd and 7th district between 2003 and 2025. He was the son of a migrant father from Mexico who entered the United States during the Bracero program in the 1940's. He died from lung cancer.
he walked like the earth was his mother. like the sun fed him revolution. like the wind whispered ballots and battle cries.
he walked with the weight of the people on his back. with the weight of borders & barbed-wire policies. with the weight of a country that still don’t know how to love the hands that built it.
but he did not break. did not bow. did not beg.
he spoke & the walls shook. he spoke & the desert remembered its name. he spoke & the children—brown & brilliant, soft & sacred—knew they belonged.
brother, teacher, warrior, friend, you who held our futures in your palms like prayers. you who stood when they told you to sit. you who turned silence into song.
you are not gone. we still hear you in the echo of our steps, feel you in the weight of the fight, call your name & the mountains respond.
raúl, hermano, you walked like this so we could run.
©️MustafaSantiagoAli
#Poetry #Art #RaúlGrijalva