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Slavery

Irene Backalenick

I was a slave in Egypt-land
Toiling in the blazing fields
With just a rag about my loins
Hauling rocks for Pharoah’s tomb

I was a slave from Africa
Captured on the Ivory Coast
Dumped in stinking holds of ships
To cross the broad Atlantic sea

I was a slave in the colonies
Standing on the auction block
While would-be buyers checked my teeth
To assess and price the merchandise

I was a slave for the Soviet
Sent to the Gulag’s frozen north
Bereft of food and warmth
While hoping for an early death

I was a slave in the Nazi war
Bound for savage labor camps
Or, worse yet, that other fate
To be gassed in Auschwitz kilns

Is slavery forever with us
That unyielding mark of destiny
That darkens, bloodies every era
Of human history?

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