What They Won't Say

by Tim Brey

I don’t recall any sermons dealing specifically with racism

The general tenor

To welcome

(Several people of African and Asian descent)

Be as inclusive as possible

If this is a hate crime

We can’t make a determination

A really bad day for him and this is what he did

Doesn’t seem in any way like the young man I knew

Sexual addiction

A temptation for him

He wanted to eliminate

Delaina Ashley Yaun, 33, of Acworth, Ga.; Paul Andre Michels, 54, of Atlanta; Xiaojie Yan, 49, of Kennesaw, Ga.; and Daoyou Feng, 44

About

This is a found poem. A found poem is the literary version of a collage; it takes an existing text and reorders and refashions it as a poem. In this case, the poet took quotes from people interviewed in this Washington Post news report to create the poem. At the time the article was written, only the names of four victims had been released. We now know that eight people were killed, many of whom were mothers and grandmothers. This poem is dedicated to the memory of

Soon Chung Park, 74

Hyun Jung Grant, 51

Suncha Kim , 69

Yong Ae Yue, 63

Delaina Ashley Yaun, 33

Paul Andre Michels, 54

Xiaojie Yan, 49

Daoyou Feng, 44