Everyone sped off at the end of their shift.
No one saw him sobbing in his car.
No one paused to say he deserved a star
for speaking out; that his courage was a gift.
He feared giving his wife the news
that he’d been sacked instantly without pay
and that he’d be on a blacklist for his views,
that this was his last working day.
No one saw him reverse his car
into the river and drop out of sight.
His workmates sent a sympathy card.
His wife set his boss’s car alight.

This poem came about when a friend of mine was blacklisted for talking about anti-racism in the secondary school he worked in years ago. As a result he was blacklisted and couldn’t find employment as a teacher again. My poetry book Tea with the Taliban is available from smokestack books.co.uk. 

Poetry on the Picket Line is a squad of like-minded poets putting themselves about to read their work on picket lines, in the spirit of solidarity. Invitations to rallies etc. welcome Contact: @PicketLinePoets