who are you to tell me how to sing the blues?

my name is richard kearns. i am a 55-year-old gay man alive with AIDS in los angeles for more than 20 years. i am a medical cannabis patient & advocate. a citizen journalist & poet. i speak today in favor of regulating medical cannabis. this is my open poem calling for a city that’s a good place to die [5-15-2007].

i’m here

i’m queer

i medicate

to the self-appointed

hall monitors with

machine guns

uninformed about the law

sure about the criminals

killing us with pretense

& to all their many poisoned ears



who are you

to tell me how

to sing the blues?

i am the blues

i ring the blues out loud

for you: hear me now

these are the 1983

denver AIDS principles

in song: we are persons

with AIDS, we are, we must be

expert voices hearkened to

in all public health

policy dialogs about

our lives & deaths & our disease

the refrain is the same for

medical cannabis



here are the blues

i sing to you

our city must be

not only a good

place to live

but also also a

good place to die



this day’s challenge? to

create a greater good

with our land use wisdom



who are you

to tell me how

to sing the blues?

listen to my song

medical cannabis

saves lives

medical cannabis

can save more lives

medical cannabis

is the single most significant

in-place but unaccessed

AIDS treatment option

available today

in los angeles

for the more than

60,000 persons

livng here with

AIDS & HIV disease

& we represent

only 25 clandestined percent

of the medical cannabis community



i’m here

i’m queer

i medicate

here is my song

the time is ripe

to regulate

help us create

livable lives & deaths

who are you

to tell me how

to sing the blues?

i am the blues

song & singer

tap your foot & hum & listen

before i’m gone



namasté



—richard kearns

poet-secretary, patient advocacy network

citizen journalist, http://aids-write.org