Voiced, Voiceless Protests in Texas

Irene Keller

September 6, 2026

My older brother sat on me for fun;

I yelled, “Get off of me! Mom, help!”

He walked away. I could breathe again.

Choking Earth gasps, “Please, no more” 

can’t be heard as loud machinery pours

concrete constantly for false foundations  

as our Matriarch feels herself smothered. 

Domestic violence stomps on women’s

faces, bodies then bruises, stitches, casts.

Voiced demands: women shelters avail. 

Bravado tall buildings point to the sky; 

men awed by their new, shiny monoliths. 

No attention to planet Earth who wails 

a song of pain, muted by concrete, steel. 

The old echo continues: no woman governor,

be a domestic queen that God planned for you. 

Women continue to push against archaic tales.  

Texas loves big business no matter from where;

hill country acres sold to out-of-state wealth.

New town, homes, roads as the Earth’s soul cracks

from relentless progress to conquer her giving body.

Like venerable Earth, aging women become invisible 

while old men grovel for attention in their maga ways. 

Wisdom warns of wide prairies, wildflowers no more. 

Breathing wealth is a fallacy, but arrogance continues

as Texas refuses to heed to damaged Earth as she feels 

the cuts, bruises of domestic violence. She, unlike

humans cannot yell, “Please, stop! I can’t breathe!”

Irene Keller, a Texas poet who continues to be concerned about the damage to our Matriarch--Mother Earth.