Go to the Beyond hate crime: Perspectives on racism in Ireland main page
Download Corkaigh poem by Nita Mishra (pdf)
Corkaigh
Nita Mishra
It was one of those days
Racialized
On Iarnroód Éireann
The lady on the train with feedback forms
Handing it to co-passengers
Just walked past me!
I didn’t exist!
But
I was not even wearing my invisible cloak!
Cork Kent station
I walk out of the toilet
a long queue waiting to use
the woman at the head of the queue didn’t budge
staring at what had just come out of the toilet
‘a brown woman’!
The woman behind her rolled her eyes
Shook her head and
walked in instead
Red-faced I went to the wash basins
Not sure
Who was more miffed
Her or me
Surely others noticed
Washington Street Cork
As we walked towards the B&B
Stopped by an elderly couple
“where did you find this beautiful thing?”
Other days were more spaced out
Go to the Beyond hate crime: Perspectives on racism in Ireland main page
Dr Nita Mishra, a poet by passion, is a part-time lecturer on rights, gender, and international development.
