Gabriel Ibarra: “South Side Shorty” (poem

South Side Shorty

Gabriel Ibarra

A reflection of what South Side Chicago life meant for the poet.

South Side Shorty, don’t forget your rice and beans. Little Village memories don’t fade away. Garfield Ridge scars can leave traces.

Where you are is not where you will be Or where the color of your skin will allow you to be, To be free enough to pass a visual glance— A glance at your last name can be the last Thing an employer sees before giving you the boot.

But before that, what happened When you rooted for each other, Rode for each other, Harked for one another before becoming separate of each other?

South Side Shawty, with that North Side swag, Mexican roots with American branches, Do we read in Spanish at home and shun each other’s use of native tongues at the store?

Have you learned not to forget your rice and beans, Not to forget your crappy knees, And to keep holding your keen sensibilities?

South Side love story that crossed state lines every weekend To keep the family legacy or start a new prophecy, Mantener un orgullo mexicano and be proud of your queerness, You’re forgetting that these can work if you put in the work.

Westside melodies call back to South Side lyrics, Feelings of home for the destitute To look down upon, I bring my smiles, yell to my friends “c’mon!”

Gay-bree-ehl or Gaah-bri-el, Truth or integrity, Success or cultural disparities. Do you say the right things if they ring in their ears? Do you stay in your lane or make a household for fame?

“Can you speak Spanish?” “How good is your Spanish?” “Are you Mexican?” “Where are you from?” “Did you go to school here?” “Will you graduate and matriculate?” Or they let the world circumspect with their doubtful gait.

You, the so-called Chicago King, You, the pauper amongst princes,

South Side Shorty, Don't you forget a single thing, Because a single thing Will be the thing You'll want to -hold- Onto Alongside that plate Of rice And Beans.