Take a bow, Iris Sande. Or a knee.  

Iris’s poem “land of the free, home of the brave” is part of an exhibit about social justice activists lining the walls of the dining hall corridor. The poem took an hour or so to write, takes less than a minute to read, but should resonate for a long time.  

Iris was motivated to write the poem when researching the Colin Kaepernick story. Mr. Kaepernick was an NFL quarterback who in 2016 started to take a knee to protest the National Anthem to raise awareness around social injustices, specifically police violence toward Black people. After that season no NFL team would sign the free agent. 

The MLK Dining Hall Installation exhibit runs through the month of January as part of a celebration of Martin Luther King Jr., the American Baptist minister and civil rights activist who died in 1968 for what he stood for: equality for all. 

“I was inspired by Colin Kaepernick and his work, and previous black activists in sports, and I found it very interesting when a lot of them would find spaces for activism or protest things that were happening in the U.S., they would typically lose their positions or be taken off their teams,” Iris said. “I also found it interesting that even if you are successful, seemingly own the world, it can be taken from you just due to the color of your skin. I wanted to explore that basic humanity, but that at the end it can all be taken away from you.” 

Iris also was mindful of the guts it takes to protest, especially if you are a person of color. 

To Iris, this reality is ever-present: “The pain and suffering that comes from protesting and the pressure that there is for Black people and people of color to not protest for fear you might lose your life in the process fighting for your lives.” 

As part of MLK Week at Loomis Chaffee, January 16–23, there is a poetry jazz slam in the SNUG on Friday, January 20, from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. Artists Criston Oates Band, Tre Brown, D. Colin, and Tracy Caldwell are scheduled to perform. Student poets are welcome, and one of them will be Iris Sande. 

Here is the poem inspired by the work of Mr. Kaepernick: 

land of the free, home of the brave. 

Iris Sande 

To be successful, is to take a knee. 

To find happiness, is to take a knee. 

To laugh, is to take a knee. 

To live healthy, is to take a knee. 

To sleep peacefully, is to take a knee. 

To wake up to a new day, is to take a knee. 

To vote, is to take a knee. 

To ride a bus, is to take a knee. 

To be served at a restaurant, is to take a knee. 

To go to school, is to take a knee. 

To run for office, is to take a knee. 

To wear your hair, is to take a knee. 

To stage a rebellion, is to take a knee. 

To lead a revolution, is to take a knee. 

To be the face of change with your heart still beating, is to take a knee. 

To live, is to take a knee. 

To thrive, is to take a knee. 

To dream, is to take a knee. 

To take a knee, is to die Black in America.