gentrification

My neighborhood is becoming greener 

The sense of humor is becoming cleaner 

The runners, the alllivesmatter protesters, and socialists 

Are confidently strolling through MY parks, 

Buying out of MY delis

Looking into MY government-funded programs

These were made for us so we don’t have to take from you 

Now you think you’re saving us because your neighborhood watch from our roofs

My neighborhood is becoming sappier 

We now care about marginalization and poetry 

We keep the rest for when times get hard

The WIC office was never this far

The state exams were never this hard 

My neighborhood is quieter

Every time you try to put out our fire 

Every day we learn to reuse our lighter