To shake loose the chains

"I Spit Syllables"

By Donato Martinez

My tongue throbs, twists and turns
As I spit syllables that leap out of mouth
My lips are so chapped and dry 
from spit and spit and more spit 
I feel my lips split

lock myself in a room 
all summer long
32 poems 
inspired by hip hop samples 
and rhythm and break beats 
that crack concrete graffiti walls
into brittle bones and dust

My brothers and sisters will no longer be trapped behind prison walls
they will not be suffocated or gagged or tortured 
or placed in solitary confinement

they will not dream of tomorrow from the other side of the fence
they will destroy the invisible border drawn with nervous strokes on maps.

They will no longer be villains or victims
they will be heroes in their books
and victors of the wars.

So I spit words that sting and leap and plunge out of my mouth 
like the perched bird on trees springing to freedom 
saving its own life from the snap of rocks from slingshots
​
I fling syllables like hatchets or axes
To shake loose the chains
so my my uncles and fathers find work 
or just a fair fucken raise
Or a little justice
Or find a reason to keep searching for the dream 
cus they have not seen money grow on trees
And I am thinking this is a big hoax
Or a big fucken lie. 

Like the many broken treaties of my Native brothers and sisters. 
​

Donato Martinez was born in a small pueblo, Garcia de la Cadena, Zacatecas, Mexico and immigrated into the USA at six years old. He teaches for the English Department at Santa Ana College. He has also taught classes in Chicano Studies. He has also been a co-coordinator of the Puente Program for 24 years. He hosts and curates many artistic events that feature poetry and music at his campus or in the community. He writes about growing up in the barrio and his bi-cultural and bilingual identities. He is influenced by the sounds and pulse of the streets, people, music, and the magic of language. ​ His full-length collection of poetry, Touch the Sky, was published in 2023 by El Martillo Press. He was selected as the Distinguished Faculty of the Year in 2024-2025. 
Donato Martinez was born in a small pueblo, Garcia de la Cadena, Zacatecas, Mexico and immigrated into the USA at six years old. He teaches for the English Department at Santa Ana College. He has also taught classes in Chicano Studies. He has also been a co-coordinator of the Puente Program for 24 years. He hosts and curates many artistic events that feature poetry and music at his campus or in the community. He writes about growing up in the barrio and his bi-cultural and bilingual identities. He is influenced by the sounds and pulse of the streets, people, music, and the magic of language. ​ His full-length collection of poetry, Touch the Sky, was published in 2023 by El Martillo Press. He was selected as the Distinguished Faculty of the Year in 2024-2025. 

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