The Apologetic Immigrant

You learn to shrug your shoulders and move on

When you sense a whiff of discrimination

You justify to yourself that since you belong to a minority group

Your behavior has to be above reproach, you cannot stoop

To a level lower than ideal even for a brief moment

(And the standard applies to your children, even infants)

So when you commit a faux-pas you promptly apologize

Repeated experiences have made you realize

That being nonchalant could invite hurtful comments

Your obsequiousness can some unpleasantness prevent

So you learn to apologize rather liberally, as if your existence

Itself is a cause of some inconvenience

You apologize for your accent, for asking someone to repeat what they said

For your child crying loudly, and so on, carefully you tread

On the public space, in a country that you call

Your own, the land where you can get it all

They said you can make it big here by hard work alone

But in the land of the free, your mannerisms you’d better not own

You have to play by the rulebook of the majority populace

Or else, harsh words or punishment you could face..

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Lower your expectations, lower your voice

You came to this country, you made that choice…

Remember to always stay in your second-class lane

You don’t want to be reminded again and again