We have to be home, inside, with the doors locked, and curtains pulled shut, by 6
No later no sooner
We don't want to be out when the city’s protectors begin to roam the streets
They'll take us like they do with those guys who walked to the corner store to get candy and something to drink
We don't want to them to mistake us for the people whose faces are mostly hidden by their sweatshirt hoodies
We have to be back inside early no matter how much our friends mock us
They just don't understand that we fear going out because we might fit the description
We go home early because we don’t want our names to be reduced to another hashtag, because we'd rather be known than remembered
We fear the dark of the night because the stars do not provide enough light to show our innocence to the man in blue
Curfew is at 6 because we don't want to get seven warning shots in the back from the officer who fears the dark of our skin
