I sit alone in a chair as I listen in on a conversation.
Man, they say, it’s almost as if he is one of us.
One of us.
What does this mean?
When did they get to decide who I was going to be.
What god I would serve.
Since when was there a standard on what made you a human being?
According to my Rabbi I am Confirmed in my synagogue.
So why do I need to be confirmed in the eyes of other people?
One of us.
One of who?
Those whom prowl the earth like vultures laying eyes on their next prey.
Those who berate, belittle, interrogate, antagonize, don’t realize who they see before them.
They ask me if my manhood is smaller because of my religious practices.
Little did they know that they too have been cut down to size.
I am a human being, and I have the right to ignite a fire to defend that which is my belief, Just as your ancestors set fire to mine not more than 70 years ago.
One of us.
Sit down on the bus, never discuss or make a fuss about the ruckus of those who are one of them.
Fold your hands, bow your head, as you pray that one day, you’ll have the strength to say, who are they to belittle me? A human being.
They oppress because of the mess they caused when they undressed my great grandmothers and great great grandfathers. They belittled them as they belittle me now.
When did they decide my religion was more obscure than any Christian tradition.
One of them.
All of them.
There will come a time when one of them needs someone like me.
Someone who will not look past my jewishness, but will be okay with who I am.
They’ll get tired of the one of thems and need something they haven’t been getting, and that thing is Comfort.
It is true love and acceptance.
The feeling of being Jewish holds no reserve for me. It is my one comfort.
You may be one of them but you can never be one of me.
One of us they say.
Maybe I’ll save these words I say, for the day when I can stay my ground and let the ray of healing and intelligence flow from me into the sea of the one of me’s.
There will come a day when we are all judged as human beings and not as Jews, or Christians, or Catholic, or Muslim, or any number of religious affiliates.
We will be equally judged.
Society can not see it now, but those with beliefs outside their own, we are in a different zone of acceptance and joy one cannot get being a one of them.
Artist’s Statement
I wrote this poem in inspiration to the answers Will gave me about society and acceptance. This piece has a few allusions to Will’s personal story itself but also has some general references to the ideas he put forward, like when he said we are all just human beings. He wants society to look at us as humans not as a jew, or christian, or muslim. The “them” in the poem alludes to society as a whole, but is also an allusion to school setting, which is where Will experienced a lot of bullying, and disrespect because of his religion. He often would be asked offensive and intrusive questions by his peers when he really was not as different from them as they seemed to have thought. There are also allusions to the holocaust in this poem as will has ancestors whom were victimized in the holocaust.The use of rhyming in this poem is to mimic the style of slam poetry. The voice of this poem is strong, and is definative, not afraid. Will is confident in his faith and loves who he is, no matter what anyone has to say. -Sarah Scott (Author)
A Collection of Photos
All photos were provided by William Reicher. All rights reserved.
A major problem facing the world today is religious intolerance, Sarah Scott preaches acceptance with her poem inspired by her interview partner William Reicher. Acceptance from society and acceptance within one’s self is expressed throughout her poem. One powerful line repeated is “one of us”. She uses it as a way to show how society divides people rather than includes people and how acceptance from all would benefit all. “Why do I need to be confirmed in the eyes of other people?”, this line strikes the reader with self-reflection. Does acceptance come only from the outside or must it also be found within; arguably the poem shows that both are important. Both are important because she alludes to the Holocaust and the Jewish religion in her poem. This forces the reader to acknowledge the wrongdoings stemming from religious persecution and reminding them that acceptance is the way to ensure it does not happen again. Finally, she references “human being” multiple times and each time it leaves an emotional response with the reader. Each individual no matter their differences is a human being- this is the overarching similarity that everyone shares. Therefore, it is important to remember that when you meet someone who seems to be entirely different from yourself, you also have one similarity that is more important. Sarah constructed a thought-provoking poem to remind the reader how past atrocities occurred, how in the present work still needs to be done, and how acceptance is the way into the future.
Despite the generations between the Holocaust and modern day, religious prejudice against Jews is still a major issue. To show this, Sarah Scott wrote a poem about her Jewish friend William and the resentment he has faced as a result of his religion. The poem depicts William’s experience sitting on the bus and listening to two prejudiced passengers. A Poem: Inspired by William Reich was published on April 12th, 2019 by Sarah Scott, a UMKC student. It was created to illustrate the difficulties Scott’s friend William, and many other people, encounter when faced with religious prejudice. Scott used a first-person poem from the eyes of William to give her project a voice the audience can relate to. The poem shows that William’s peers did not treat him as an equal human being. He was treated as “one of them” (line 22) instead of “one of us” (line 3). Society has divided its members into categories based on race, gender, and religion. These divisions can cause people to treat others of different backgrounds poorly. This same mistreatment has been endured by William’s ancestors. During the Holocaust “persecutors belittled them as they belittle [William] now” (line 20). The horrors of the Holocaust should not be forgotten as many of the prejudices of that time are still prevalent today. Even after all the bullying and judgement he has gone through, William’s religion “is [his] one comfort” (line 28). Jewish people are proud of their identity and their heritage. No amount of persecution can change who they are. Religious persecution is prevalent throughout history and modern society and a universal effort must be made in order to end it.