The Union Hall

[edsiejka]

The new shoes
Hurt Charlie’s feet
Forcing him to walk
A step at a time
The union hall
Looked the same
Older
In disrepair
Paint peeling from the sides
A light missing from the letters
Of IBES, Local 25.

Inside
Every seat was taken.

Heads nodded in his direction
Some whispered
Here comes Charlie
The old man
Who helped start the Chapter
Years ago.

On the dais
Was a lawyer
Who said management had to be competitive
During these bad financial times
The owners only wanted a decent profit
While they were in favor of a union free work shop
They were not anti-union.
Just being financially prudent.

The lawyer’s thin lips
Sapphire cufflinks
Starched shirt
And expensive suit
Said more than he intended to say.



Some of the members were angry
Some disagreed
In loud whispers
Almost shouts
But it was Thomas who stood up
Smart
Tough as a whip
He spoke out against union busting
Dirty tricks
That broke the back of the workers
Restricting unionization
Firing anyone who organized.

You could hear the lawyer sweat.

After it was over
Charlie went up to Thomas
And shook hands
The old man said he liked his words
Thomas replied
Fuck ‘em
Fuck the lawyer and fuck management.
Fuck ‘em all.

A smile crossed the old man’s face
Certainly not fancy words
No expensive education and no degrees
For Thomas
But he was honest
And told it like it really was.

Slowly Charlie made his way out
Meeting the night
Feeling its coolness
Marveling at its wide open darkness.

Stopping
He looked down
Funny, how his shoes didn’t hurt anymore.

[Kailashana]

Thank you.

This poem has so many layers of truth, it makes it hard for me to breathe through it and I'm not wearing any shoes.

~A

[the mingo]