we’ve all drawn harm
we’ve all played our part in where we are today
two and a half decades ago
a peer published a comic
mocking colleagues and clients
stereotypes praised as clever
one caricature has bothered me to this day
a female leader drawn so simply
but so crassly
it made me cringe
but everyone in the city laughed
so i did, too
because it must have been okay
and i wasn’t brave enough to say
talent and praise is no excuse for cruelty
ink fades
the harm leaves a scar
we must repent our own sins to really heal
