It Is Not The Virus

Mabel Encinas is a Mexican artist and poet based in London, member of the Hispano-American Women Writers on Memory, who is also a senior lecturer in higher education in the UK. Writing and art has allowed her to process her experiences as a migrant woman, and to participate in the world. She is a member of Hispanic American Women Writers and Spanish and Latin AmericanPoets and Writers (SLAP). She has published in two collective works of poetry and narrative, and has a collection of poetry called 'Intimate View'.
by Mabel Encinas-Sánchez
Image

No es el virus

 

It is not the virus

ni el encierro

ni los momentos de explosión en casa,

que son pocos,

ni el extrañar tertulias

con amigas poetas,

ni el haberme perdido

de celebrar con mi familia en México

un cumpleaños que buscaba ser grande.

 

No es falta de museos ni de comidas fuera

ni la calificada del verano,

que fue mucha,

ni son los cubrebocas

ni el evitar las gentes en la acera

ni mi dolor de espada, ni los ojos resecos

ni el sentir que el trabajo

me rebosa los días y se derrama.

 

Son las mujeres asesinadas,

los niños maltratados,

la falta de refugio,

la impunidad

a la que la calle

no le hace falta.

 

Son las calles en llamas

por el racismo policial,

por el racismo, punto

Las manipulaciones,

los prejuicios que inflaman,

las Home Office que existen en estos lares.

 

Son eugenismos, clasismos,

oscurantismos,

represiones de Estado,

y los emperadores.

 

Es la codicia la que marca pauta,

y sus gobiernos

los que matan a las comunidades

y crean caos.

El virus sólo lo viene a coronar.

 

Estas son las pandemias

estas son las pandemias

que nos matan.

nor the confinement

nor the explosive moments at home,

which are few,

nor lacking the gatherings

with poet friends,

nor having missed

celebrating with my family in Mexico

a birthday that wanted to be special.

 

It is not the lack of museums or eating out

nor the summer marking,

which was large,

nor the masks

nor avoiding people on the sidewalk

nor my back pain, nor my dry eyes

nor the feeling that work

brims over my days and overflows.

 

It’s the murdered women,

the abused children,

the lack of shelter,

the impunity

which does not need

the streets.

 

It’s the streets on fire

from racist policing,

from racism, period

The manipulations,

the prejudices that inflame,

the hostility to migrants

around these parts.

The eugenics, classism,

obscurantism,

state repression,

and the emperors.

 

It is greed that sets the tone,

and its governments

who kill communities

and create chaos.

The virus only comes to crown it all.

 

These are the pandemics

these are the pandemics

that are killing us.

 

Mabel reads It is not the Virus as part of Fuerza London - a film commemorating the Latin American community's experience during COVID, through music, dance, poetry and real life stories. Watch Full film below

Related Articles

Image
HOLOGRAM (2022) Book of poems by Miguel Cullen

‘Books should be more than just lines of poetry.’ HOLOGRAM (2022) the new collection of poems by Anglo-Argentine poet and…

Image
BALLAD OF A HAPPY IMMIGRANT (2021) book of poems by Leo Boix

“Come back a man or never come!” says the refrain in the titular poem 'Ballad of a Happy Immigrant', that is, in a…

Image
Pioneering Black Latina Artists

Recently we published a list of Black Heroines of Latin American History, Afro-Latinas who put their lives at risk, and in some…

Latest Content

Image
Lima London
Food
Lima London

Lima London is a fine dining experience with a promising menu full of variety.

Image
Unravel
Arts and Culture
Unravel: The Power and Politics of Textiles in Art

Unravel: The Power and Politics of Textiles in Art showcases the works of 50 international artists…

Image
Food
Made in Brasil

Amaranta Wight revisits London’s iconic award-winning Brazilian restaurant in Camden – a much-…

Most Viewed

Image
Top 10 Argentine Footballers

As one of the biggest football teams in South America and the world, the Argentine Football…

Image
Ballads and Boleros
Top Ten Mexican Male Singers of all Time

Since the days when Mexico was a serious rival to Hollywood in terms of film production and quality…

Image
Top 10 Mexican Boxers

Globally, Mexico is known as a boxing powerhouse, boasting some of the greatest champions in the…