Malcolm X is dead

all he left was a dark pool

and a piece of paper 

with the names of the people 

who killed him 

as Betty Shabazz leaned down 

to hold the last 

of his warmth she smelled 

the chocolate stuck 

to the inside of his molars 

she smiled 

lifted up his skinny tie 

right there 

may have been a whole 

new world or 

a sloppy pile of Black

blood we all  

bleed the same some of us just 

bleed more 

Asha Futterman is a writer from Chicago. She is an investigative researcher at the Invisible Institute and a student at Barnard College.