It all depends
Khawla Badwan
What happened to lessons we learned at school
The ones I believed when I was a fool
The songs about humanity
The rules about equality
What happened to assemblies about voice
And that we all can have a choice
The talks about standing up to the bully
The stories about caring more fully
It turns out it all depends
And that you should sit on the fence
It turns out we shouldn’t care
Even if they suck the air
It turns out silence is gold
No morals we should hold
Instead here are the new rules
For the times of these ghouls:
When you see a child dying, terrified
Hold your tears until nationality verified
The ones I believed when I was a fool
The songs about humanity
The rules about equality
What happened to assemblies about voice
And that we all can have a choice
The talks about standing up to the bully
The stories about caring more fully
It turns out it all depends
And that you should sit on the fence
It turns out we shouldn’t care
Even if they suck the air
It turns out silence is gold
No morals we should hold
Instead here are the new rules
For the times of these ghouls:
When you see a child dying, terrified
Hold your tears until nationality verified
Dr Khawla Badwan is a Palestinian-British academic whose scholarship explores language and social justice in education. She completed her BA in English Literature and Linguistics at the Islamic University of Gaza which was completely destroyed by Israel during the ongoing Gaza Genocide. Khawla holds a doctorate in Education. Her poetic screams are an attempt to use language to feel and bear witness.
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