The stars on their flag are yellow

Yellow like their skin

Yellow

Like my skin

The stars on our flag are yellow

Red

Our flag is red

Red like the clothes we wear

Red like the lanterns we hang

The firecrackers we light

With the matches

We ignite

The fires in their homes

The fires in my home

Crack

The firecrackers sparkle

Crack

A head hits the floor

Bang

The firecrackers echo through the courtyard

Bang

The bullets whiz through the plaza

Bang

The speakers shake the classroom floor

Click

The light comes on

The stares won’t fade

My lunch smells like their contempt that day

Our skin is all yellow like the stars in our sky

But my red is the blood on their blades

Not the blood of their veins

They are not my people