Not a brash and green reporter
But a journalist extraordinaire;
All knew the gov’mint had committed
Many heinous hidden crimes:
Assassinations, executions,
Disappearances, tortures, threats,
But she had the hidden facts, the dates
That others could not find.
(There was no disputing that
Highest authority made the calls.)
Seventeen murdered journalists
And no murder had ever been solved . . .
Now she had the full report
And the media awaited.
As she walked the boulevard
A fast car came up very close,
Men grabbed her, dragged her, hog-tied her, shot her
And dumped her on the edge of town.
She’d yelled for help but no one spoke:
Paralyzed with fear no one gave help.
With Chechnya’s chief fighter gone
Lesser flames soon sputtered out.
So mourn, weep and shout “Outrage;”
Then say, “We’ll not forget you,
Anna Politkovskaya, journalist extrordinaire.”
– Joan Lee
