A Woman's Struggle
A girl goes to school in the longest shorts her mom could find
She’s sent home because boys just can’t control their own minds
She’s told her body is too provocative at too young an age
They tell her to just cover up and don’t give in to the rage
Don’t get angry at being stifled for the benefit of others
Don’t try to viciously murder the society that smothers
The society that teaches young girls to be ashamed of their bodies
That teaches young boys that it’s okay to lose control
That the bodies of young girls are to blame for their failure
Because everyone knows that “boys will be boys”
A young woman walks home alone from a party, too early for the sun
She doesn’t know it, but she’s being followed by a strange man
If she knew, she might not have taken that shortcut there
Because the second she steps into that alley, he’ll grab her
He’ll tackle her to the ground, keeping her trapped with his weight
She’ll struggle but he’ll win, he’ll get what he wants, you just wait
He’ll leave her lying there afterwards, clothes torn and bleeding
If she’s even brave enough to tell anyone, they’ll say it was her fault
They’ll tell her “We’re sorry. Maybe next time you should dress differently”
As if she was “asking for it” by the clothes that she wore
A mother teaches her daughter how to survive in today’s world
She tells her that men will hurt her and leave her out in the cold
She raises her to be strong, to not make the same mistakes
This young woman knows it doesn’t take much to make a heart break
She knows there are consequences for being too naive
From her experience with those who grab her and use her and leave
From those times in school where the teachers humiliated her
She tells her daughter these stories so that she can learn
and so that she won’t be surprised when they happen to her