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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.