WATCH Miriam Hechtman recite ‘But oh so long the wait has been’

But Oh So Long The Wait Has Been (inspired by Oodgeroo Noonuccal’s poem The Dispossessed)

But oh so long the wait has been
Oh so long they walked
With fear in their fingers
And sweat on the brow
As the politicians talked and talked

And oh so long the wait has been
Oh so long they stood
With prayer on their lips
And tears streaked their cheeks
As the priest repeated what could

And oh so long the wait has been
Oh so long they swayed
The mother with her baby
The baby with her child
As the city burned in rage

And oh so long the wait has been
So very long we’ve run
From truths and shames
Stirring deep in our veins
Told a story by those who won

And oh so long the wait has been
So very long we’ve hoped
To stitch what’s broken
To mend with gold thread
To unknot the chains and rope

And oh so long the wait has been
How much longer will we wait?
For all the sorries to be said
Erasures duly read
The growing up of the human hate