War on Greed

Dedicated to the memory of Satao (1964 – 30 May 2014) and all of Africa’s wild that have died in the pursuit of man’s greed.

I gnaw my thoughts for words
the way art bows to sunset
I am ensnared by her beauty
Her wing stretched song
Her baritone roar
Her wildcat skin
and all that stands between seduction and sin
She is an elephant’s tusks
She is a rhino’s horn
She is the bones of a lion
She is the scales of a pangolin
She is our past
and our future
She is the blood on our hands
She is the ghost in the mirror
She is mother
She is nature
And she is dying
The war on poaching is a war on greed
but what we stand to lose is priceless
Bust the myth and set fire to the lies
Asian status symbols symbolise ‘ignorance is bliss’
Honour the animals we have lost
Borrow courage from the survivors
Strike your vote like lightning
Raise your voice like thunder
Storm the courthouses
March for justice!
The greatest super power in the world is public opinion
The sins of the father must end in this generation
Jamie Joseph


Photo credit: Mark Deeble / The Elephant Movie.
“I was mystified at the bull’s poor attempt to hide – until it dawned on me that he wasn’t trying to hide his body, he was hiding his tusks. At once, I was incredibly impressed, and incredibly sad – impressed that he should have the understanding that his tusks could put him in danger, but so sad at what that meant.” –Mark Deeble