Rise

A poem by Achuthan Panikath

Tue Mar 10 2026

Forget the rules of engagement;
You pulled a gun.
You questioned my being
For a t you just heard—
Just not timid enough to calm your nerves.
You called it protocol, with ice in your hearts.
I screamed survival— I deserve the dawn.

You measured my life in seconds you didn’t own.
You decreed my worth with the venom in your eyes.
I stood trial in the space between your breath and mine.
My death was pronounced with a twitch of your hand.

You, reactionary judges of life and end,
You stand naked in the gaze of our eyes.
Cower not behind the laws of your lords.
You chose to kneel; You chose to hunt.
I could have taught you what it means to be
A human who gets to sleep in peace.

My voice never died with the bullet you let fly;
It echoes as a symphony in a million hearts tonight.
You will hear us. You will see us.
As you lie a pawn that can sleep no night.