A Seat On The Bus For Rosa (In Memorial)

(CLEVELAND) - I keep getting email's seeking donations for the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial which is almost completed.

I certainly have nothing against MLK but, if it was not for Rosa Parks who started the movement, not MLK, where would Black America be today?

Heck, I'd be willing to bet MLK was one of them. Oh sure there would still be a movement but at what point.

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A Seat On The Bus For Rosa (In Memorial)

Finally, it’s time to go,
All day I’ve pushed peddles with my feet,
I’ll hurry to the bus stop,
Being sure to get a good seat.

There, a chance to rest,
Home, I’m on my way,
Only to get up tomorrow,
And put in another day.

Photos, questions and fingerprints,
Did I commit a crime?
I distinctly remembered when I boarded,
Dropping in my dime.

Why give up my seat?
After working hard all day,
I thought the fare was the same for all,
Is there more I have to pay?

Don’t they know how hard I’ve worked?
To get this seat I had to rush,
Now you’re going to tell me,
Move to the back of the bus.

Wait, I pay my taxes,
Even go to church and pray,
They do not have the right,
To treat Rosa Parks this way.

I never wanted to start a movement,
Just have a seat on the bus,
Being treated fairly as an American,
Why is everyone making such a fuss?

My name is known throughout the world,
In history books here and there,
It really didn’t have to be me you know,
Just anyone who paid their fare.

And over 50 years later,
An Icon is my name,
I’d gladly do it all again,
Circumstances being the same.

Heaven is my final journey,
Can’t wait till I get there,
Knowing I’m going to enjoy the ride,
I’ve already paid my fare.

By Luke Easter

Luke Easter is a poet who writes about things that are very close to the heart of Salem-News.com. Another former U.S. Marine, Luke heals the world with an approach that reaches people on a different level, one known for centuries, yet too often forgotten in the one we live in.

We live in a world of social & economic injustice. The main reason for founding America in the first place was to relieve the oppression of the King of England. Patrick Henry said it best, “give me liberty or give me death.” And yet, all too often death seems to be the only way out. Why is there such a high suicide rate especially among teens, in the land of the free & the home of the brave? What makes headlines? Good news? Ha! More depressing stories than anything else. I feel poetry takes an edge off the hurt of bad news while still delivering it but in a, “glitzy” sort of way. Giving a different perspective. Kind of like slap in the face as opposed to a knife in the back. At least with the slap you’ll live to see another day and you will know whom it’s from. I wasn’t here for the beginning of the world but at 59, I just might be here for the end.

Even though it’s still a knife, rhyme poetry helps to dull the blade. And that’s my job. You can write to Luke Easter at: lyricsfromlucas@aol.com

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ALANIS March 30, 2011 7:20 am (Pacific time)

I'm learning about George Bush

Trey Jackson December 24, 2010 7:05 pm (Pacific time)

Luke actually another lady was going to do the bus protest but became ill, and Rosa Parks filled in. During that time juncture the illigitimate birthrate in the black community was less than 20%, and now in many urban black communities it is hovering around 80%. In addition, the majority of our youngsters were graduating from high school. In today's local paper the top academic African American graduate in my town just flunked the U.S. Army entrance exam. So where would we be if Rosa Parks did not do her bus protest? Maybe the question should be is how did we allow people like Jesse Jackson and now people like Al Sharpton get so much power. Do they speak for you? Those of us conservative blacks have become targets, but I'll tell you one thing, our children are getting a good education and they follow high standards of behavior. Maybe instead of looking at people like Rosa Parks, blacks should be looking in the mirror and learn how to take personal responsibility with their lives and their family members.

Editor: This is a masked jab and I do not believe you are black, how do you like that? If you are, you know there is a name for people who fail to realize the suffering that exists among their own people? How on earth would your warm embrace of this ridiculous country and its needless unfair laws benefit anyone? I suspect that maybe those rates you listed above exist for your own extremely limited view, like maybe in your own particular school? Hell, I don't know since what you write is a total slam on black people. Again, I think you are a fraud. All Luke does is implore people to do better, make more of themselves, and he isn't a self-labeling 'conservative'. Isn't that code for sellout at minimum?

Say, did you encourage your kids to join the military? Surely there is no more noble cause for a conservative that one of the George Bush wars. As a final thought, after re-reading your comment about Rosa Parks, you might have written one of the stupidest suggestions I have ever read. You are a damned insult to all of us.

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