women-in-orange-box

In my country
No lane is named after a woman
Yet the houses lining these streets
Are crowded with women who suffer

In my country
No hospital carries a woman’s name
But maternity wards
Brim with grieving women

In my country
Women are denied freedom
Confined like animals to cages

In my country
Women are shadows
Silent and unseen

In my country
Women are shrouded non-beings

Poor women!
How do we live
With our anger and rage

In my country
How unfortunate 
Is the life of a woman

Shakiba N.

Photo by J. McDowell.