ALLISON WHITTENBERG
the beautiful hand of the
dead cop was the first
thing I saw
after I arrived on the ugly scene
she had graduated first in her class
first woman
to make deputy in our small town
but it’s a John Henry task going
against the machine of biology
Inclusion led her to an active shooter/
the barricade/hostage situation/
maintaining custody of a prisoner/
Outmanned – advance, can’t wait for backup
the beautiful hand
the ugly scene
Allison Whittenberg is an award winning novelist and playwright. Her poetry has appeared in Columbia Review, Obsidian, Feminist Studies, J Journal, and New Orleans Review. Whittenberg is a ten-time Pushcart Prize nominee. They Were Horrible Cooks is her collection of poetry Killing the Father of Our Country is her latest novel.
