Brett Lock
The Jews are hiding in cupboards
from men who search for them with guns.
This is not occupied Europe
in 1941.
This is the present day,
this is contemporary.
Jews are hiding in cupboards
reliving history.
Jews are dying on pavements,
in Paris on the Rue de Rosiers.
Dying in my lifetime –
there’s indifference and despair.
This is our present day,
this is the time that’s come.
Now Jews are hiding in cupboards.
Modernity’s undone.
This is not ordinary,
there is no state of war.
But Jews are hiding in closets
with men breaking down the door.
The Jews are hiding in cupboards
from men who search for them with guns.
Now Jews are hiding in cupboards.
What have we done?