Chicago: City on the Take Algren Sequel

Hustlers

on the diagonals
crack their
Cold raw knuckles

Raising

Bold baroness voices
A symphony of cacophony

Siren bleating horns
Feet tripping over eyes
no longer connected for Vision

People tripping into the street
Visions of nothing
but a neon screen.

Golden spoked hopes
Darting in and out
Of pedestrian flocks

Oblivious
Only framed
To the hand reaching.

Hustlers

Be thy mirror
Wheels
Going round and round

Lines of power on the formica
Moreno what have you done
For the people of the fountain

The only neighbors I had in Chicago
Were the ones on the streets
They were the only reliable ones
Dripping in stench
Cloth
Ashamed but
present
Solid
Molecular
Pain of phantom love.

 

Take 2

Liars

Gold spun words brewed with self-spun hate
A dinner party hosted by
A six foot five long legged
Post filled to the brim with lies
Showed up late to the party
He Trumpets weapons from his mouth  

thick droplets saliva spraying webs.

Poison sprayed into eyes, blinding
Belly jutted out bald grease stained
Wife beater holes
A potential too spoiled
Wreaking havoc on everyone for imaginary toil

Built from an evil fickle ego
Piles his plate high more for me he spits
than his own child
I want
more and more
He growls to his
Busted female slave trophy
Who secretly hopes his words are true

You really do love me, right?
His spit will serve fine for the desperate on a cold night
He steals and begs and begs and Steals
Spit lies flooding

You can always find someone desperate to blind
With your poison
but  finally
This water will not do

he lies in the cold stone box
Alone
Nobody cares

Nothing was lost
Only gained
for now he is gone there is more for all
His son smiles smirks

Happy the lies are over

This is only one of the passer-by liars
Of the dark streets
Towered by giants
Casting shadows

Of fame and misfortune
And dollars stolen from
The innocent

You only stole

From

Your

Own

soul.

 

Take 3

The holy

Shout from the south side
Peace hangs around
The white robed
neck
You cannot ignore
death

Children drop
one
by
one

Slaves to
The brutality
Greed
Selfishness
Liars

Who do you blame
YOURSELF
Blood keeps on dripping
Into the stones
The only prayers answered

Are the actions
You
take

We pick up our phones
Only aware of
Addictions

We did not do enough

We did not do enough

We did not do enough.