“telling me
not all men
have
bad intentions

doesn't do
anything to
reassure
me.

after i
walk away from you,
nothing will have
changed.

i will still
be scared to
leave my house
after sundown.

i will still
find comfort
in keys resting
between fingers,

i will still
question
the intentoins of
every man i know

i will still
wonder
when i am
to become

a story
meant to warn
other people's
daughters,

& i will still
cry when i turn on
the television
to find

yet
another man
getting away
with

well--
what they
always seem to
get away with.

i am not
the one who
has to change
the way i think
or the way i act.
they are.”