By Gauri Jairam
"It's just a joke", they said,
But she will never feel the same about her body again.
"It's just a joke", they said,
But each word chips away at her self respect.
"It's just a joke", they said,
But her confidence is shattered, crushed and battered .
"It's just a joke",
But she can take it no more for her heart has bled too many times ,
"It's just a joke",
But it's not funny anymore ;
Not when you call her a bitch, a slut, a whore ,
Not when venom coated in honey is spewed from those lips,
Tearing her down with each word that rips,
It's not funny that she covers her stomach everywhere she goes,
Hiding scars like secrets no one knows,
It's not funny that she drowns herself in fairness creams ,
Or questions her worth every time she speaks,
It's not funny when you push her into an insecure mania ;
Children dying is not funny, nor is paedophilia,
It's not funny when you dehumanize people and cause them agony.
Misandry is not funny and nor is misogyny;
In this black world full of jokes, crude and rotten,
Kindness is a virtue long forgotten;
People forget the power their tongue holds over others,
Leaving behind wounds that time barely covers.
Yet,despite the wreckage,
The wounds, the weight—
They only laugh, tilt their head, and say,
"Relax,babe! it's just a joke."