“Stand Up,” by Calvontre White
October 16, 2018
Stand Up
America, America a place that is unknown
like history there are secrets that
have never been told
Many have stood up for years, why don’t
we celebrate them, why don’t we give them
cheers
When we started Black Lives Matter
and people said they care, then tell us
why police brutality is still roaming in the
air
History starts now so why not
take a chance, because you can be
the person that finally took that STAND!
Calvontre White wrote “Stand Up” while a student at Leschi Elementary School, with WITS Writer Jeanine Walker. He performed this poem at SAL’s Journalism Series event with Van Jones on October 10, 2018.