There It Is

The poem "There It Is" by Jayne Cortez is short, simple and straightforward. In this poem Cortez is making a point. She is saying here it is and what will happen if something isn't done.

"And if we don't fight

if we don't resist

if we don't organize and unify and

get the power to control our own lives."

Cortez is making it clear that you have to stand up for yourself no matter what. You can't sit back and just let people or anything else take advantage of you and put you down. You control your thoughts and actions and you need to be the one in charge of your life.

"Then we will wear

the exaggerated look of captivity

the stylized look of submission

the bizarre look of suicide

the dehumanized look of fear

and the decomposed look of repression

forever and ever and ever

And there it is "

In the last part of her poem Cortez is saying what will happen if you don't take charge, if you sit back in fear and uncertainty. Our faces will show the outcome when we don't try. Our expressions will be signs of "captivity", "submission", "suicide", "fear" and "repression". Meaning that we will not be our true selves we will be belittled versions of who we once were. For once you are down and beaten it is hard to get back up and fight.