Dancing and Burning

I have a dream

It wasn't long ago
skirts got hiked up,
bras were burning, frozen fingers
gripping elastic as though it were a sign-
weights lifting off shoulders

Freedom sang and we danced
King cried into the skies
"I have a dream!"
a dream that included women,
though they grabbed at the dream
with icy fingers slipping,
pussies sliding out from under
places unseen,
suddenly waving like a white flag
the flag of unconditional surrender
into the world marked by men

coarse lines etched into pavement
left over from wire burning
feet stomping, madness
strange wet dreams swimming
into the American consciousness
because no-
not everyone
can
be
free

no

Not everyone can climb
into their liberty, their dreams,
the doctor had a cure
for one disease, but the cure
only made women sick, sick,
our pussies and breasts suddenly
hanging from us like jewelry
our prized possessions
passed around at parties

no

we did not rise to the side
of men, we did not see the end
of oppression, no
no, we danced and burned
and cried out to the goddess
and fucked every man we found
and danced around and
around
until the "movement"
made us sick in our souls

We are less women
nameless with our sex
defined under the weights of men
defined in a world that
does not value men OR women
not modesty or power
not prayer, not life
not community, no

no

Now we are androgynous
we had the dream and it slid
down our inner thighs
we lost the dream
like a violent miscarriage
which is what the "movement" was-
a miscarriage of justice
never finding the souls
of women

no

It only sought to write on women
expectations of a man's world
here is what it means to be free, little girl
let me hand you your liberty
you can be naked before me
I will fuck the freedom from you
but you will never see bondage
beyond the illusion of change,
smoky veil hiding the reality
of a dream
never fulfilled.