The PSA played on screen front and center.
Teen dating abuse is real, it doesn’t get better.

Laughter arose from the corner, and then from the back.
What is so funny? What skill can you possibly lack.

The girl on the screen cried over sexting gone wrong.
The girls in the audience laughed loud and long.

Is this funny to you?! I wanted to yell.
But they seemed to not notice what we were trying to tell.

“If you found this funny, I cannot command
That you change your stance right here on demand.”

A statement from the back and silence fell,
“They think it won’t happen to them, but it can hurt them as well.”

We often laugh at uncomfortable concepts.
We hide from our lack of knowledge and cling to our mindset.

Sadly, this starts at a very young age,
Make it a joke and it all goes away.

Our laughter degrades the feelings of others,
Cutting down their experience to that of joke fodder.

Be kind in your actions, your words, and your tone.
Change starts within, by accepting what you do not know.

Pretending it away does not do the trick.
Supporting those around you is what makes it stick.

Abuse does not avoid you because you laugh in its face.
It is not a funny topic to those enveloped in its chains.

It can happen to you or to those that you love.
Appearing when you least expect it, dressed as a dove.

It’s no joke to be shared, or an embarrassment to hide.
But a disease that can be stopped by simply opening your eyes.