🔵 By Terry Landry. Photo by lauragrafie.
I’ve been called an animal and a menace to society, but when I look into the mirror, what do I see?
I see a man who looks like me. A man that is kindhearted, non-judgmental, optimistic, open-minded, and outgoing. As I stare into his eyes, I see the silent rage from years of being trapped like a caged animal, eyes weighed down by the coke of society that’s been placed upon his shoulders.
Does a human deserve to be locked up for eternity because of one bad decision he made in life? Society believes so! Prisons are built to break men, and when he is broken, society has consummated its revenge. Society sees him as an animal, something that is inhumane, but I just see a man. A man of no color, height or weight. Just a man! I see a man who has the same fears and feelings as any other men, the fear of dying alone, the need to feel wanted in all ways, and the need to feel loved. So who’s the animal, the man in the mirror of society?
As I close, I ask the world, when you look into the mirror, who or what do you see?