COPE
I can’t breathe / Eu não consigo respirar
von Camila Mendes

The world’s gone sick
masks
supposed to cover faces
have fallen down
it has happened
racist fascists
out and about
genocidal messiah
without empathy
people are dying
no, not dying, being killed
four years ago I wrote
that the news I saw
they made me want to leave
leave my country
for good
but it’s all global
it’s all the same
João Pedro
George Floyd
Marielle
the similarity is
the black color of their skin
benefits turned into alms
judgement is needed
black kids have to go to school
equipping themselves with knowledge but dialogue can’t handle this much
injustice
what is needed is
to burn down racists
burn everything
destroy
the second pair of eyes never hurts
families cry their daily losses
it’s always like this
quotidian hereditary
on the backs, heads, necks
the government aims to leave us
in ignorance
at rock bottom
I cry and I choke
it looks more like a joke
sometimes the best thing is
not to look at it
if you get into the community
you will freak out
hunger, dying people
and pigs
ready to kill!
he asked not only once
but 6 times
just 6 more minutes to live and go right there
in the daylight
it happened there
to anyone
who would look
the cowardice
enough of this disease
silencing our voices
it’s not worth it
the danger, the risk, the front line
it’s not the only way to save our flesh
no more appeal
the lacks of those
who are not educated
are huge
prayer is made from the guts
no one can take
being treated like garbage anymore
a freak
spilled milk over the national television
world offense is ready
makes no miracles
but knows how to make
shit
takes care of no one
I don’t care if they die it’s a lot of anger
to transcribe in poetry
I try to alienate
myself
dive into anesthesia
eyes closed
move on
but life insists and
asks for more I come today
but with no happiness
to talk about it
all
all that is happening
I’d rather be dreaming
instead of dying
time has now changed
there is no past
or future
let’s stop sitting on the fence
the present challenges us
all of us
call us
let’s go together
universally
struggling
trembling
life insists and
asks for
more

///

O mundo adoeceu
As máscaras que eram para cobrir os rostos,
Caíram, aconteceu
Fascistas racistas
Escancarados na pista
Genocidas messias
Sem nenhuma empatia
O povo morrendo
Morrendo não, sendo morto
Há quatro anos escrevi
Que as notícias que vi
Faziam-me querer exilar do país
Mas é tudo tão global
Lá nos estados unidos
Tá tudo meio igual
João Pedro, George Floyde, Marielle
O que tem de semelhante
É a cor preta da pele
Auxílio é esmola
Tem que ter discernimento
Preto tem que tá na escola
Se armando de conhecimento
Mas só diálogo
Não dá conta de tanta injustiça
É preciso
Taca fogo nos racista
Queima tudo
Destrói
Chumbo trocado não dói
Famílias choram
Suas perdas diárias
São sempre assim
Cotidianas, hereditárias
Nas costas, cabeça ou pescoço
O alvo do estado
É deixar ignorante
No fundo do poço
Choro e fico engasgada
Parece mais uma piada
Ás vezes é melhor nem olhar
Se tu pisa na comunidade, vai pirar
É fome, gente morrendo e puliça pronta
Mas pra matar!
Ele pediu não só uma vez
Mas seis
Seis minutos de vida indo
Ali a luz do dia
Estampado
A quem queira ver
A covardia
Chega dessa doença
Silenciar a voz
Não compensa
É perigo, risco e linha de frente mesmo
Para salvar nossa carne
Não tem mais apelo
A falta de quem não se educa
É farta
Das tripas se faz oração
Ninguém aguenta mais
Ser tratado que nem lixo
Aberração
Leite sendo tomado em rede nacional
Ofensa pronta
Mundial
Não faz milagre
Mas merda sabe fazer
Não cuida de ninguém
»Tô nem aí se morrer«
É muita revolta
Para trazer em poesia
Tento me alienar
Mergulhar na estesia
De olhos fechados
Seguir em frente
Só que a vida
Insiste e pede
Venho hoje
Mas não alegre
Falar de tudo isso
Que tá acontecendo
Preferia tá sonhando
E não morrendo
Os tempos agora mudaram
Não tem passado
Nem futuro
Tem que sair de cima do muro
O presente provoca
E a todes nós
Convoca
Vamos juntes
Fortalecendo
Todo mundo
Mundo todo
Estremecendo


*
Camila Mendes

is a black woman, actress, poet and cultural producer. She has a bachelor degree in Business Administration (FG University, Brazil), a Certificate in Acting for Theater (Sesc Santo Amaro – PE, Brazil) and Anthropological Acting (School of Anthropology Theater – O Poste Theater Group). Co-founder of enlace theater group, the first one to focus on the production of other Theater Groups in Recife (her hometown), as miçanga theater group. Camila is also an actress and producer at abayas theater group, bissexto theater group and a member of the black women network afrocentradas. As a poet, she released her first book, dos amores, in October 2018. In 2020, She also started a project called sua história, minha poesia (Your Story, My Poetry), which transforms people's stories into poems, bringing a breath to the pandemic world we are living in.

To follow this woman's work: @camsmendess and @dosamorespoesias



Camila Mendes

is a black woman, actress, poet and cultural producer. She has a bachelor degree in Business Administration (FG University, Brazil), a Certificate in Acting for Theater (Sesc Santo Amaro – PE, Brazil) and Anthropological Acting (School of Anthropology Theater – O Poste Theater Group). Co-founder of enlace theater group, the first one to focus on the production of other Theater Groups in Recife (her hometown), as miçanga theater group. Camila is also an actress and producer at abayas theater group, bissexto theater group and a member of the black women network afrocentradas. As a poet, she released her first book, dos amores, in October 2018. In 2020, She also started a project called sua história, minha poesia (Your Story, My Poetry), which transforms people's stories into poems, bringing a breath to the pandemic world we are living in.

To follow this woman's work: @camsmendess and @dosamorespoesias



















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I don't follow literary rules in writing. Here, we call it ‘marginal writing’.

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– anna carolina nogueira
























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In May 2020, the current president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, did a live and had a glass of milk. There were two speculations as to why he took the milk. The first: A challenge from the Brazilian Association of Milk Producers. And the other speculation is that this would have been a subliminal message from the president in favor of white supremacy, that is, Bolsonaro would believe in the superiority of the Caucasian race over the others. This is because several movements have adopted the practice of drinking milk in videos as a symbol of such racial supremacy.

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– camila mendes