Like heroes and villains,
They came with light and with darkness.
The darkness spread like a virus
A killing virus that turned the hearts of fathers
Against their own sons and daughters.
A plague that forced many to deny their heritage
Just to stay alive.
One that tried to erase the smiles
They were born with.
Many women became motherless.
Many babies became baits for alligators.
Old men chose money over their sons.
The villains, heartless like monsters,
Watched them drown in foreign oceans,
Watched them hang themselves without guilt,
Watched them beaten to pulp
And left to die on the way.
With shackles on their feet
And chains on their wrists,
They hummed like true warriors.
Only the flesh died
The soul remained untouched.
These were great heroes
Who fought through cold and heat,
Through blood and sweat,
Yet kept their eyes on the brightest hope,
Praying we would never witness
What they endured.
And today
it remains a history
A painful one.
– CHIDIMMA PLACID NWAKA

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