Who Are We?

Killings, bombings and eviction,

People are living in privation

Of security, freedom and dignity

In our close vicinity.

Some of us are also there.

But you see our whole world there.

We do prevent the discomforts,

But you consider us mere escalators.

Any indecent incident can cause misconceptions.

But it does not mean we are the source of their proliferation.

We are born in oblivion and may die in oblivion.

We don’t need your appreciation. We are not greedy for fame.

We clamour due protection. Not a treatment meant for the lame.

Protection against victimization, protection against accusation and protection against lynching.

Don’t take us for granted. We are current leaders, we are change-makers, and we are part of peacebuilding.

We are first to respond and first to be affected.

We are not a threat. Just because some of us are uneducated, unemployed and underprivileged, we are not a prospective wretch.

We are creators, we are artists - Not so-called perpetrators.

We carve peace out of dissidence.

We transform tension into contentedness.

We are not confined to five pillars.

Participation, protection, prevention, partnership, disengagement and reintegration are just the tip of the iceberg.

We live in our own actions.

Actions that affect the lives - that matter.

Actions that bring in socio-political agency that shatter –

The shackles of casteism, communalism, linguism and discord;

That aspires to establish harmony, amity and concord.

We know our peers, we don’t need government’s cheers.

We can manage the finance as we can sustain the under-funded programs.

Even then you call us a newbie.

Why don’t you say bye-bye to your stereotypes?

We can’t wait for grey hairs.

We can’t remain silent for any other ten years.

It’s our time, it’s our society.

You take with you the monopoly on NYP,

We have with ourselves UNSCR 2250.

We know our relevance in nation’s security,

We know we are the glitter of peaceful glory.