Violence and Ignorance | Teen Ink

Violence and Ignorance

May 31, 2013
By rhea752 GOLD, Merritt Island, Florida
rhea752 GOLD, Merritt Island, Florida
16 articles 1 photo 17 comments

Favorite Quote:
Maybe it's not about the happy ending, maybe it's about the story.


Sweat beads down his back
Welts and blood and dirt and tracks

Fresh sushi lays on the plate
Spotless utensils lying straight

Thai man yells for him to work
Twenty hour under that merciless smirk

Boy and girl bond over fish
Enjoying a simple, tasty dish


He sees another collapse and die
Man tosses him over without a blink of the eye

Deep fried fish cooked at a restaurant
Tossed and served with a flaky croissant

Salt and dry and skin and gut
Get burnt by a tossed cigarette butt

Girls cook fish at a sleepover
And eat while they play downriver

He tries to run and make it home
They kill him and toss him into roiling sea foam

Lady at a dinner sips a bubbling drink
And cuts into her meal, her salmon pink


The author's comments:
Slave labor in the Thai fishing industry — whose biggest buyer happens to be the U.S.

To learn more:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/05/31/slave-labor-fish/2375655/
http://blogs.wsj.com/riskandcompliance/2013/05/29/human-trafficking-report-roils-thai-fishing-industry/

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This article has 1 comment.


Mckay ELITE said...
on Jun. 19 2013 at 2:03 pm
Mckay ELITE, Somewhere, Virginia
146 articles 0 photos 2230 comments

Favorite Quote:
"The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do."
—Apple’s “Think Different” commercial, 1997
“Crazy people are considered mad by the rest of the society only because their intelligence isn't understood.”
― Weihui Zhou

I love your feminine rhyme in this poem. You didn't just do plain chliche rhymes. And the overall concept of the poem. And the message you convey is powerful. To me, this is a fascinating poem. Moreover, thought-provoking.