Are We Not Victims Too?

From this beautiful land
Our fatherland
They were taken away in chains
Across  the Atlantic into strange lands
Some drown in the sea
Some freezed in the cold
Some died of hunger
Some of sexual assaults
They are the victims
Of political greed
And economic selfishness

When the war started
It began like the moonlight's dance
Yet our brothers fell in their numbers
Thousands and tens of thousands
The brains of the Biafrans were blown up
The bowels of the Nigerians were thrown open
They were all buried in unmarked graves
In the unknown groove of a dark age
They are victims
Of political greed
And economic selfishness

We sing of peace with troubled hearts
Shout of joy with  broken spirits
Dream of better days with a confused sights
We are victims too

Are we not victims
Of failed history
Of distorted images
Of broken brotherhood
Of bastardized cultures
Of political greed
And economic covetousness?


© Olatuja Oloyede