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Op-Ed: An American Love Poem

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I want those championing freedom
the patriots of peace
the ones who march into our schools
handcuff our history
hold our imaginations hostage
the so-called American dreamers

illustration of a seedling sprouting from a book

I want them
to uncage their hearts
to cast off their chains of fear
to remember the bedtime stories
that comforted them
when nightmares chased sleep away

illustration of a seedling sprouting from a book

to remember the first-grade teachers
who read them pictured fables
that showed them how to love themselves
and planted the seeds of possibility
that blossomed into their becoming

illustration of a seedling sprouting from a book

to remember how hopeful it felt
to be held by their mother’s songs and poems
on nights when thunder
ravaged the sky.

illustration of a seedling sprouting from a book
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I want them to know
that banning a book
is like banning a hug
and that is a dismal storm
no child should be left behind in.

Kwame Alexander is the author of “The Crossover,” which won the Newbery Medal and is being made into a series on Disney+. He is also the author of the forthcoming trilogy “The Door of No Return.”

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