‘Aliens are community’: Tampa poet gets the last word on DeSantis in this blackout poem

I made this blackout poem as a way of shifting perspective. The original text is a press release from Florida Gov. DeSantis announcing his efforts to speed up the deportation process of illegal immigrants in Florida. The press release is titled “Additional Memoranda of Agreement Between Florida Law Enforcement and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.” I printed out the press release onto paper, then used a Blackwing pencil and black Sharpie marker to create my blackout poem.

I find blackout poetry to be the perfect medium in addressing an issue, topic or idea that we are grappling with, because it is so direct. Taking only what is actually there on the page and working within the confines of what exists, we then focus on creating new meaning. This is an expression of life, perhaps more true than drawing upon pure imagination. Because we are challenged to compose a new reality from what’s been given–or what we choose to work with.

This requires an eye. Not two, but the one that allows us to see underneath and beyond. How is this possible? Staying focused on the origin, the eternal point.

I realize what I’m saying may sound like an esoteric slant to a real life horror show, where we are daily being confronted with a reality we don’t want. Even among those fortunate enough to claim an ideal personal life, undoubtedly when looking out at the world, most if not all will see an aspect of human creation that is horrifying. This is why blackout as a medium is so powerful—it reminds us of our innate ability to transform reality.

Obviously, my blackout poem may not seem to directly change the fate of those people in our communities who are regarded as alien and unwelcome. This idea of who is alien and what makes them unwelcome is a complicated path to navigate. And what power does something like writing, or poetry, for God’s sake, have in guiding this path? Maybe it is to become not only a guide but the path itself. After all, everything begins with an idea.

When we review the cycles of history, we can identify patterns and common threads—some that are less obvious and some that exist on the surface level. And when I examine the history of writing, it has been dominated by the white male mind, voice and hand. This is evidenced by the top-selling and best-of lists of literature, plays and other forms of written records. I’m not saying that the white male perspective is unwelcome, even though some components of it are alien to me. So I strive to understand within the differences of experience and opinion. I commune with these aliens, while appreciating the positive attributes of their existence and all the wonderful tools, ideas and art they have provided. In fact, I learn from them and retain the beneficial aspects so that I can inform and build the reality I want, to create in my own image and from my perspective.

This requires, at times, flipping the script, as I have done in this blackout poem. Line by line, taking a black Sharpie marker to emphasize what I do and don’t want. This might also be an advantage of the blackout medium–it demonstrates how those who come later, almost seemingly late to the table, may actually be in a prime position.
We are able to take what’s been done, then edit and change it to our perspective and through our pen, assert the last Word.

Blackout Poem of “Governor DeSantis Announces Additional Memoranda of Agreement Between Florida Law Enforcement and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement”

Enter the functions
within.

Restore our will
to assist.

That means
making our direction
and duties state:
aliens are community.

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This article appears in Jun 26 – Jul 2, 2025.