Leland James, ‘Falun Gong in the Dock’ – Honorable Mention

Falun Gong in the Dock

—charged by the Chinese Communist Party

by Leland James

Comes the prosecution, charging Falun Gong with treason,
high crimes most heinous: Zhen 真, Shan 善, and Ren 忍.

Crime One: Zhen
Comrades shall have no aim, no fealty, above the CCP.
Charge: Trueness, transcendent, a Falun Gong fault—heresy.

Crime Two: Shan
Comrades shall berate any who fail to worship the State.
Charge: Compassion, a Falun Gong flaw—failure to hate.

Crime Three: Ren
Comrades shall unite, oppressing those fallen outside Party lines.
Charge: Forbearance, a Falun Gong failing—tyranny declined.

GUILTY! cry the judges; the sentence, forthwith, fourfold:
beatings, imprisonment, torture, death; and organs sold.

The world looks away and business goes on, links in a chain
—Third Reich forgotten; forgotten the promise, “Never again!”

* * *

 

Recognized as an Honorable Mention in FoFG’s 2021 Poetry Contest