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 40th in our Democracy and Hope Series. This series will highlight hopeful aspects about our Democracy using various genres including poems, interviews, short stories, and articles about political events.
we were born of sunday sun, wrapped in choir robes,
small hands folded in prayer, our dreams woven with hope,
Addie Mae, Cynthia, Carole, Denise—
we were joy in braids, brown skin’s soft release,
four little girls with futures vast and wide,
our laughter was gospel, our innocence untied.
we danced between pews, let the hymns braid our hair,
never thought evil could find us there,
but hate has no altar, no hymnbook, no psalm,
it moves like a shadow in the quiet, calm,
and when the walls shook, and the sky split wide,
we were thrust from our girlhood, baptized in the tide—
of fire and stone, in a place meant for peace,
we became martyrs, our names now never cease.
we were not soldiers, just children of light,
torn from the morning, robbed of the night,
but our voices rise, like smoke, like prayer,
we speak in the silence, we are still here.
America, can you hear us, can you feel this wound?
the clock’s still ticking, the past looms too soon,
the same hate grows in polished halls,
in laws that shackle, in the way justice stalls.
our bodies are gone but our spirits won’t rest,
until you see us in each protest, each test—
of will, of love, of what’s right, what’s true,
we are the seeds, and we’ve come to renew.
remember us not as broken, not as lost,
but as voices that echo, whatever the cost,
we are the fire that burns for a change,
and this time, America, we call you by name.
©️MustafaSantiagoAli
#Poetry #Rememberance #SayTheirName #AddieMaeCollins #CynthiaWesley #CaroleRobertson #CarolDeniseMcNair
#CivilRights #HumanRights #SixteenthStreetChurchBombing #history #ProudBlue #sundayvibes #NeverForget