Greg Freeman

Brexit boy

by Greg Freeman

Tuesday 16th June 2020 5:39 am

Feels like we’ve won the league. Yet

I get so angry I want to smash things.

You know that feeling? When people

sneer on the telly, or you talk

to someone who’s been to university.

You see their lip curl, when they think

you’re not looking. Take back control!

Ain’t just the weather, I’m always hot

under the collar. Say what we think

on the buses, down the tube. Tell ‘em

to get packing, doesn’t matter if they’ve

lived here years. We took the smirk

off the posh boy’s face. Thought

he had it in the bag, didn’t he?

Back then you couldn’t speak your mind;

now you can shout it out loud.

No one ever asked me what I thought before.

They’d better not try and twist things round.

Fuck off Europe! All the potholes will be fixed!

Britain will be great again!

First time my vote ever counted for anything.

🌷(3)

◄ Lockdown haiku

VE Day anniversary 2020 ►

Comments

trevor homer

Thu 29th Oct 2020 14:41

I'm coming to your stuff late, Greg, for reasons explained in other comments. Yes, It could quite easily have been much harder hitting, but an iron fist in a velvet glove has the same effect. T

John Coopey

Wed 17th Jun 2020 08:43

I missed this first time round, Greg. You are right that the timing is right again. I think it might have been more intriguing, though, if you had left the doubt in rather than declaring your hand.

Greg Freeman

Wed 17th Jun 2020 07:36

Thanks for the comments and likes, everyone. FB reminded me today that I had attended a vigil for Jo Cox at Westminster four years ago. There was a picture of people gathering, beside the statue of Churchill. Ah, well.

Stephen Gospage

Tue 16th Jun 2020 18:02

Hi Greg

I think this is why we need poetry. These verses cut through the nonsense and state a truth, however inconvenient, that so much of polite society finds it difficult (or even distasteful) to express. I spent years writing about Brexit and its (to me, disastrous) consequences but I never got close to distilling it like this. As you say, we should remember Jo Cox, do our best to learn lessons and hopefully create a more tolerant, inclusive world for future generations.

Really interesting read.

Steve

M.C. Newberry

Tue 16th Jun 2020 16:00

I note online that the word "thug" is reported as racist - no doubt
due to its association with the murderous religious sect of India.
Nothing like having a band-wagon to leap aboard. I would call the
violent protestors hooligans, but that might risk someone from
across the Irish Sea holding me to account due to its "racial" connotations. As for criminal elements latching on to the Brexit
cause, there is a comparable but much more significant situation
that affected the reputation of the Irish Republican cause. Back to
the "band wagon" and its usefulness for the opportunistic fellow travellers seeking a respectable advantageous ride,

<Deleted User> (18980)

Tue 16th Jun 2020 13:47

On our local news today - the English Civil War memorial in Worcester has been smashed up and sprayed with the letters BLM.

There are idiots on both sides.

Tom

Tue 16th Jun 2020 12:51

This made me smile (and sigh) Greg. Great write.

I also love (and despair at) the idea that someone thought you'd written this from your own point of view ?

Greg Freeman

Tue 16th Jun 2020 08:50

Thanks for commenting, Brian. We could argue about so much about what you say, but I am grateful that you accept that the Brexit cause has been tainted by the thugs. I live among 'middle England' folk out here in Surrey, too.

<Deleted User> (18980)

Tue 16th Jun 2020 08:40

Hi Greg. The Brexit cause is tainted by the ultra right thugs you refer to. The 17.4m had had enough of the so called elite telling them what was best for them so they reacted against it in 2016...and again three years later to give the Tories an 80 seat majority. They will continue to react against the elite if they are given the opportunity, and anti-Brexit articles, speeches, poems etc will only harden their attitudes.

In terms of recent events, the 'middle England' folk I live amongst are generally against racism but do not wish to see our history erased by removing statues and signage.

Greg Freeman

Tue 16th Jun 2020 05:43

I first posted this here two years ago, when it caused some confusion. One or two people weren't sure if I was espousing the views expressed above. I'm posting it again while the events that took place on the streets of our capital and elsewhere in the country last Saturday are still fresh in our minds. To avoid any doubt, the poem is about the kind of people who brandish 'Britian First' (sic, and indeed, sick) banners, piss next to memorials of policemen, and exulted in the murder of MP Jo Cox shortly before the 2016 Brexit referendum. In retrospect, I think this poem is far too soft on them. NB I didn't realise when I posted this earlier, but today is the fourth anniversary of Jo Cox's death. Lest we forget.

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