United We Stand

Antoinette Winstead

February 11, 2021

They charged the hilltop citadel

breached its hallowed oaken doors

marauded its sacred halls, declaring 

victory from its Chamber’s desecrated floor.

They proclaimed terra nullius

ignoring the People’s history

planted their rebel flag

all for a despot’s glory.

Dumbfound by the chaos

the World watched in disbelief

the destruction of Democracy’s beacon

encouraged by its Commander in Chief. 

But the mutineers miscalculated the People

their steadfast resilience and determination 

believed them divided and conquered

instead found them united in conviction. 

The insurrectionist lead by a megalomaniac 

soon to meet a Judas’s fate

forever denounced as traitors

purveyors not of freedom but hate.

Though battle bruised and bloody

the People rise as one

the World need not fear

Democracy is not done.

Antoinette F. Winstead, a poet, playwright, director, professor, and actor, teaches film and theater courses at Our Lady of the Lake University where she also serves as the Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and the Program Head for the Mass Communication and Drama programs.