The riot management cadets say
stay indoors if you do not want to get hurt
so we do not know how to respond
when the riot management cadets demand
we step outdoors to display our papers
and watch the afternoon parade.
The riot management cadets order
everyone to remain calm while fires
are extinguished in streets
and hearts throughout our neighborhood.
The riot management cadets promise
answers soon will be provided for all
that has happened to our home
so long as none of us questions what
the riot management cadets say
is demanded by the man in charge.
The riot management cadets instruct
everyone to keep in view at all times—
yet we draw shades halfway
before shoving chairs against doors
not wanting to hear more
but white-knuckled with worry
we might miss something
the riot management cadets say.
Noel Sloboda is the author of two poetry collections as well as seven chapbooks. His work has appeared in Harpur Palate, Fourteen Hills, Midwest Quarterly, Nimrod, Pembroke, Quarter After Eight, Rattle, and elsewhere. Sloboda has also published a book about Edith Wharton and Gertrude Stein. He is a professor at Penn State York, where he coordinates the English program.