This was written in response to the repatriation of the remains of 9 Lakota children to their homeland in what is now called South Dakota in July, 2021
the tears were all shed
a century ago and more
mattering not to anyone
except those who
could not speak, could not
seek the return of
Rose Long Face or
Dennis Strikes First or
Friend Hollow Horn Bear
to be reunited
with the spirits of their people
for it was a time when spirits
meant even less than tears;
when the manifest destiny
confirmed the christian
mission; when the land was
needed for settlers to live on the land
never minding those who
had lived with it.
Truly the Trail of Tears lives on.
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