POETRY

Abort the Hyena

A note before you read

This poem confronts misogyny and victim-blaming directly, and refers to abuse, sexual double standards, and violence against women. It is a work of protest — the cruelty it names is the thing it rises against.

Two jaws

one murmur, one tears

one speaks son, other whispers tch tch tch behuda

one licks , one spits


name? it has different names

sometimes larka hai wo,

sometimes izzat,

sometimes log kia kahen gy?


ears? it has two ears

one hear footsteps,

and whispers ,

it's a man, this late? it's okay he is a man

other hears running

it's a woman, this LATE?

then chasing, shouting

tch tch tch behuda


eyes? it has two eyes

one sees a man,

abusive, lustful, disrespectful, oppressive, manipulative

averting gaze, covering it

whispering it's okay he is a man

other sees a woman up and down

seeing marks, bruises, silence, forced obedience, bound,

averting gaze, whispering it's okay it's a woman.


tongue? it has two tongues

one taste man

calling him Romeo, player, experienced, Strong, a real man, bold


other licks woman and spits back

making face at the taste of her flesh

calling her used, slut, whore, characterless, loose, cheap, tch tch tch behuda


nose ? it has one nose

smelling woman

her skin

inhaling shame

then laughing and calling others

saying " she was asking for it"


it has many sharp nails

every nail hold different names

larki ho tm

adjust kro

zamana kia kahy ga?

kia krogi parh likh k

acha to ?

mardo mein bat nahi krti orten

ghar betho


every nail teaches her to shrink

to stay silent

to be obedient

to lower gaze


force her to forgive the abusive

force her to apologize the disrespectful

force her to say yes to eat their flesh


it sits at the gates of different Houses

always hungry

drooling

waiting


people call it society,

forcing to nurture


a woman call it hyena,

shouting, abort the Hyena.


A
About the Author Angabeen Kanwal Qurtuba University of Science and Information Technology, Dera Ismail Khan · Pakistan

Angabeen Kanwal is a recent graduate of Qurtuba University of Science and Information Technology, in Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan. She writes fierce, unflinching poetry about women's lives, violence, and the social forces that try to make women small.

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