Month: June 2020

A Statue of Boris Johnson

Statues don’t teach history
They’ll tell you more about the folk that erected em
A twisted sense of victory
And limited love for those that elected ‘em
When Edward Colston got hoyed into the oggin
By a Black Lives Matter demo to be fair
That’s history in the making
That’s history being made right there

When all this is over
And we’re mourning our family and friends
We’re gonna build a statue of Boris Johnson
And chuck it straight in the Thames

He follows the science but only when the science
Tells him what he wants to hear
Like someone took the black lives report
And made several sections disappear
What would you expect from Picaninnies Johnson?
Elevated to the top job
Then coming over all bewildered schoolboy
Surprised by the virus and the braying mob

When all this is over
And we’re mourning our family and friends
We’re gonna build a statue of Boris Johnson
And chuck it straight in the Thames

Not on his watch but no justice for Grenfell
Three years on and the cladding’s not gone
And the number of deaths from COVID 19
Should be an embarrassment to anyone
22 days of dither and delay
He says he’s proud, it’s jaw-dropping
What’s the strategy now Mr Johnson?
He says you should all look forward to going shopping

When all this is over
And we’re mourning our family and friends
We’re gonna build a statue of Boris Johnson
And chuck it straight in the Thames

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Iain Duncan Smith Intervenes

The latest so-called expert
With influence to exert
On a virus to be beat
To lift the country to its feet
Is a Johnson cheerleader
And a former Tory leader
With a trail of bodies of his own

The latest interjection
To influence our direction
Crying what about business
And economic fitness
Led the DWP
Attack on disability
And has a trail of bodies of his own

The latest politician
On an ideological mission
To put the money first
And let the people come of worse
Says one metre will do
Between me and you
Has a trail of bodies of his own

So, when the spin comes in
And the lobbying begins
Think about the man
Understand where he stands
Take his deeds with
The words of Ian Duncan Smith
Who left a trail of bodies of his own

 

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Another Day, Another Press Conference

Can we have the first slide please?
It’s Hancock so it must be Thursday
But it could be Monday or Tuesday
It’s another day but the same disease

Can we have the first slide please?
This one shows lies, as you can see
It continues to rise, exponentially
It’s our one area of expertise

Can we have the first slide please?
It’s Hancock so it must be Thursday
But it could be Monday or Tuesday
It’s another day but the same disease

Can we have the next one please?
This one shows complacency
That we’ll display quite shamelessly
While easing the lockdown aimlessly

Can we have the first slide please?
It’s Hancock so it must be Thursday
But it could be Monday or Tuesday
It’s another day but the same disease

And here’s what the data tells us
With the scientists here to help us
It was business that compelled us
To let the virus overwhelm us

Can we have the final slide?
The one that shows how many died
The one that lacks the interventions
The one with all the unanswered questions

Can we have the first slide please?
It’s Hancock so it must be Thursday
But it could be Monday or Tuesday
It’s another day but the same disease

 

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No More ‘Til September

No more ‘til September
A tacit overturning of policy
Without a blame of the science
Or a claim of the science
A victory won discreetly
By parents waging a quiet war
By simply ignoring the rule
By simply not sending their children to school

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Edward Colston 1636-1721 (He’s in the River Now)

How’s your anosmia?
How are your critical faculties?
How’s your sense of taste and smell?
Can you face up to some realities?
Have you worked out why black lives matter yet?
Why Colston’s head had to hit the deck?
He’s in the river now

The man made his money out of trading slaves
Imagine walking past that every day
Imagine living in a society
That still celebrates guys like these
So have you worked out why black lives matter yet?
Why Colston’s head had to hit the deck?
He’s in the river now

How’s your anosmia?
How’s your critical thinking?
How’s your sense of taste and smell?
Is George Floyd’s death starting to sink in?
Have you worked out why black lives matter yet?
Why Colston’s head had to hit the deck?
He’s in the river now

Oh you only like protest that’s achingly polite
You don’t like it when police and protesters fight
It doesn’t matter to you who brought the provocation
It’s enough to fuel your indignation
You’ve stopped worrying if black lives matter yet
You’re mad that Colston’s head has hit the deck
Well, he’s in the river now

The man made his money out of trading slaves
Imagine walking past that every day
Imagine living in a society
That still celebrates guys like these
So have you worked out why black lives matter yet?
Why Colston’s head had to hit the deck?
He’s in the river now

Sometimes you don’t get by asking nicely
Even if you frame your demands precisely
Sometimes the state will respond with violence
If they disapprove of your lack of silence
Have you worked out why black lives matter yet?
Why Colston’s head had to hit the deck?
He’s in the river now

The man made his money out of trading slaves
Imagine walking past that every day
Imagine living in a society
That still celebrates guys like these
So have you worked out why black lives matter yet?
Why Colston’s head had to hit the deck?
He’s in the river now

 

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Here’s the New Normal

 

You’ll need a big fridge to hide Johnson in,
You’ll need a much bigger one for the trail of bodies that he’s left behind.
The worst prime minister in history
Tells parliament to consider the carnage to be a source of pride.

Don’t ask about the new normal,
The new normal is worried about breathing,
The new normal is a daily government briefing
To announce how many they killed today
And didn’t they all do well, hooray!

Here’s the new normal.

You’ll need a big fridge to hide Johnson in
But there’s a circus of liars to fill in the gaps while he runs and hides.
To tell you all how well they’re all doing
With the death toll rising nicely pictured on coloured slides.

Don’t ask about the new normal,
The new normal is worried about breathing,
The new normal is a daily government briefing,
To announce how many they killed today
And didn’t they all do well, hooray!

Here’s the new normal.

Turning people into bodies,
Turning bodies into numbers,
Turning numbers into charts,
Turning charts into soundbites,
Turning soundbites into slogans,
Here’s the new normal.

Don’t ask about the new normal,
The new normal is worried about breathing,
The new normal is a daily government briefing,
To announce how many they killed today
And didn’t they all do well, hooray!

Here’s the new normal.

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More on Masks

Should I be wearing a mask?
We asked
In March
And April
And May,
And now they say yay.
Not just OK
But you must.
Nonplussed,
How can we trust
An instruction apparently so picayune
They thought that it could wait ‘til June?

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Untitled (3rd June 2020)

Outside a crowd is shouting about what it really means to be black.
Inside Rees-Mogg’s campaigning to get his voting traditions back.
(It’s a matter of priorities
And MPs with propensities
For higher risk of the disease
Are not one of his).
And how many of the inside crowd
No longer say the words out loud,
The traders and the bankers
Who were “All Lives Matter” wankers.
Who’s to be shamed
Into actual change?
When the most police stops for COVID-19
To slow spread in the community
Are of people who are BAME
While Dominic Cummings gets off scot-free.
A union jack in a profile picture
Guarantees a negative response.
Who cares if the UK’s sicker?
Or the spread is quicker?
The inequality slicker?
And thicker?
If that’s what the Tommylicker thinks he wants.
They might say
That we’ve come a long way
To make society better,
To ease the virus pressure.
(While ignoring the disease unfortunately
Affects black people disproportionately).
But the people and the science both know
That we’ve still got some way to go.

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8 Minutes 46 Seconds

It took eight minutes and forty-six seconds
For Derek Chauvin to kill George Floyd
Black folks killed by racist police
A conversation that the nation can no longer avoid

Having to explain why black lives matter
To the colour-blinds and the don’t-want-to-listens
While righteous anger boils over in the streets
‘Cos it’s not even equality, it’s a fight for existence

The Racist-in-Chief threatens vicious dogs
Accompanied by ominous weapons
Summoning the far-white militia crowd
A long hot summer definitely beckons

From Blackout Tuesday to Stand Up Wednesday
How many deaths? How much longer?
From burn it up to resist the clampdown
Take a knee, together we’re stronger

It took eight minutes and forty-six seconds
For Derek Chauvin to kill George Floyd
Who wants to argue that oppression of a black man
Protects the status quo by which he’s employed?

Having to explain why black lives matter
To the colour-blinds and the head-in-the-sanders
Hiding behind all lives matter
Happy to be disapproving bystanders

The Racist-in-Chief threatens the National Guard
Accompanied by heavy arms
A nod and a wink to the KKK
Hands up don’t shoot still won’t prevent harm

From Blackout Tuesday to Stand Up Wednesday
How many deaths? How much longer?
From burn it up to resist the clampdown
Take a knee, together we’re stronger

A solidarity message from the football club
Sentiments you share with your mates down the pub
Be honest about privilege, be honest about race
Together we can make the world a better place

It took eight minutes and forty-six seconds
For Derek Chauvin to kill George Floyd
A simple demand to lend your voice
And end to racism, justice for George

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