"I cannot help your violence with like buttons" and "In My Country"
I cannot help your violence with like buttons
you will rape and cane
and without impunity
the endless
buttons
of social
crap
won’t hold you back
or stop your hand
not matter what
no beggar
rides
those wishes
electronic opiate for the masses
here in the ivory lands
all artists are social redeemers
we are changing the world
with our six figure canvasses
we are enlightening millions
with our xenophobic obscurity poetry
and our novels
not just stories
but writers of all wrongs
justifiers of all justices
here in the ivory lands
even our clothes
works of art
changing seasonally
the betterment of all mankind
In My Country
Women walk on eggshells
The way they dress is a rapist’s defence strategy
Their silence confers consent
Their bodies always up for grabs
In every way
There is no privacy especially of the womb
They may be legally and religiously sacrificed on the altar of boys-will-be-boys
They may be murdered at will
But have dubious right to self defence
They are not heard
They are not believed
They are not counted
Their labour not valued
That they are
Our mothers
Our sisters
Our daughters
Our beloved
May be conveniently ignored
Easier then to believe,
They are property
of the god
of the party
the state
The work of pd Lyons has appeared in print and online publications throughout the world. Poetry collections have been published by Lapwing Press, Belfast, erbacce-Press, Liverpool & Westmeath Arts Council Ireland. pd was selected to participate in Human Rights Consortium at the School of Advanced Study, University of London publication titled ‘In Protest: 150 Poems for Human Rights’.
He won the 2019 erbacce-press International Poetry Prize.
pd was and raised in the USA, and currently resides in Ireland.
pd recommends Battered Women's Support Services.
