Open your eyes and look
At the people held in isolation
Evicted from a community
That once held them close
Their facade of an accepting home
Twisting into a wry smile
Exposing it's rueful nature
Won't you look at those people
Loathesome of their selves
And fearful of the world
Scared to meet our eyes
Dreading what opinion they would form
After much negative attention
Behind the isolation and prejudice
The voices are silenced
Society has ears and they hear
But they do not take time to listen
Take heed and know
That they themselves don't want it either
Won't you just start a small talk
Get to know them and simply not
Believe in the words spewed by society
Why don't you start listening to their stories
And not tales that travel through ears
For those carry more spite than truth
Underneath all the clothes and make up
Under all the carefully crafted masks
Under all the stereotypes by society
You'll find that they're just people too
With skin and hair and blood and bones
We're all just the same species of humans
Listen to their hearts speak
For when it cries out for love
That's a gift you can give to them
For it aches for kindness
And soft smiles and reassurances
That they're not a disease
Simply humans misunderstood
And when you stand in front of them
Smile and treat them normal
Relish in their eyes that glow
Screaming of joy, of being understood
Their elation and their genuine smiles
From finally being accepted
AIDS does not make people dangerous
Nor does it make them contagious
It is society that forces their beliefs onto them
Until they twist their own minds and view of oneself
Into something disgusted and monstrous
Into a being not worthy of anything
AIDS does not make a person any less human
Neither does it make them unworthy of love
It only means they're a person
With a misconstrued life
Neglected by the people they trust
So you can touch them and give them a hug
The Lord knows they need one
©haru_k
H