Poem: Unbreakable Me

You beat down, and beat down, and beat down,

But I get back up, back up, and back up.

You pretend you don’t see me, don’t hear me, don’t know me.

But I won’t let you.

I fight. I find my voice. I stand tall.

I will not be ignored.

I will not be silenced.

In my darkest hour I will become the light, leading all who stand with me.

You won’t give me a seat at the table; I will dance on top of it and make myself centre stage.

You won’t hear me speak; I will write my words until they echo for all to hear.

People who sound like me have pushed through adversity.

People who look like me have struggled for autonomy.

People like me may have disability— but we are not just what you see.

You try to tell us what we can say, what we can do, where we can go.

But you will not define me, you will not break me.

Because you are not me and in the end no one choses for me, but me!