I have written a poem for an art exhibition at my church, AIDS NOW: LEADERSHIP NOW. I would appreciate any comments.
AIDS LEADERSHIP NOW!
Why can’t they hear
The universal wailing
Rising from the depths
Of a soul, from the empty heart
Of a lover, a partner
Of a husband, a wife
Of a mother, a father
Of a sister, a brother
Of a daughter, a son
Of kin and friends
For ONE who has died of AIDS
ONE beloved, ONE of their own
Stolen by the heartless Evil
That is called AIDS?
Multiply that by thousands
In every continent in our world
The deafening tumult
Of broken hearts
Where is their comfort?
When will the stigma cease?
When will they get social justice
To make meaning of their grief?
Where is the leadership
To fund AIDS education?
Why has a cure for AIDS
Evaded scientists for so long?
If there is blame and shame
For this terrible disease
It belongs to the laboratories
Where scant efforts die
It belongs to the bureaucracy
And pharmaceutical companies
Where the aim is to make money
Not to discover a cure for AIDS
Where is the leadership
To monitor their actions?
How is donated money spent?
Why is no accounting required?
Where is the leadership
That is so desperately needed?
Can’t they hear the pleading in
That deafening universal wail?
