10/01/2026
So, for Season 1 Episode 5 of Poetic Adventures , I performed solo for the majority of the night, with tributes to New York, Florida, and our Blue Collar Workers.
But toward the end of the night, another poet arose from the shadows, stepped up, and grabbed the mic. His name is Eric D Molina .
It was Eric’s first time at Coach's Corner . He arrived tonight through nothing more than word of mouth after a family member came across one of the many flyers posted around town and told him about Poetry Night.
Eric, thank you for stepping up to the mic tonight.
Here was my literal Mic Drop Piece to end the night. 🎤🔥
It’s a little long, considering it’s Spoken Word, but I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.
So sit back, listen, and experience the words of a poet who found his way to the mic at Poetic Adventures.
We All Bleed the Same Color
They call us Black.
They call us White.
They call us Brown.
They call us Yellow.
They call us this,
They call us that...
As if a color
could tell you
what kind of person
beats beneath the skin.
As if the shade of my face
determines the size of my heart.
As if the language I speak,
the country I came from,
the God I pray to,
or the name written
on my birth certificate
makes my blood
any different from yours.
But cut me...
And watch the truth
come pouring out.
Red.
Cut you...
Red.
No matter what flag
we stand beneath.
No matter what neighborhood
we were raised in.
No matter what language
our mothers whispered
when they rocked us to sleep.
Red.
We all bleed
the same color.
So tell me...
Where the hell
did we learn to hate
something we never took
the time to understand?
Who taught us
that another human being
was somehow less human
because their skin
looked different?
Who convinced us
that someone's ancestry
was a threat?
That someone's accent
made them inferior?
That someone's culture
made them dangerous?
That someone's existence
gave us permission
to look down upon them?
Hate doesn't come
with a birth certificate.
It is taught.
And if it can be taught...
Then maybe—
just maybe—
it can be unlearned.
Because a newborn baby
doesn't enter this world
hating anyone.
They don't look at another baby
and say,
"Your skin is different from mine."
They don't care
about borders.
They don't care
about political parties.
They don't care
about stereotypes.
They don't care
about surnames.
They simply want
to be held.
Loved.
Protected.
Fed.
And somewhere along the way...
Humanity teaches them
to divide.
We build walls
where there should be bridges.
We draw lines
across maps
and somehow convince ourselves
those lines make one life
more valuable than another.
We inherit prejudices
from generations before us
and carry them forward
like family heirlooms.
But hate
is not an heirloom
I want to pass down.
I don't want my children
to inherit my hatred.
I want them
to inherit my humanity.
I want them to see
a stranger
and see a person.
Not a color.
Not a stereotype.
Not an enemy.
A person.
Because beneath every label
is a heartbeat.
Behind every accent
is a story.
Behind every face
is someone who has cried.
Someone who has laughed.
Someone who has been broken.
Someone who has loved.
Someone who has lost.
Someone who simply wants
to make it home tonight.
And here's the part
that should humble every one of us:
We are all temporary.
Every single one of us
gets the same ending.
No matter how much money
you have in the bank.
No matter how powerful
you think you are.
No matter what color
your skin happens to be.
No matter what neighborhood
you call home.
One day...
The heartbeat stops.
The breath disappears.
And the body returns
to the earth.
So why spend our limited time
hating one another
over differences
we never chose?
Why waste a lifetime
building enemies
when we could have built
relationships?
Why teach our children
to fear people
they haven't even met?
Why judge a book
by the color
of its cover
when we haven't bothered
to read the story?
And to the people
who preach superiority...
Listen carefully.
You are not more human
than me.
And I am not more human
than you.
We may have different histories.
Different cultures.
Different traditions.
Different beliefs.
But underneath it all...
We are human.
So tear down
the walls of prejudice.
Burn the blueprint
of racism.
Throw away
the dictionary of hate.
And replace it
with something
far more powerful:
Understanding.
Because I don't want
a world where everybody
looks the same.
I want a world
where everybody
is treated
like they matter.
A world where difference
isn't a reason for hatred...
But an opportunity
to learn.
A world where diversity
isn't something
we tolerate...
But something
we recognize
as part of what makes
humanity beautiful.
So the next time
you feel hatred
rising inside you...
Stop.
Look at the person
standing across from you.
Look beyond the skin.
Look beyond the name.
Look beyond the language.
Look beyond the stereotype.
And remember...
There is a heart
beating beneath that chest.
There is blood
running through those veins.
And if that person
gets cut...
It won't bleed
Black.
It won't bleed
White.
It won't bleed
Brown.
It won't bleed
Yellow.
It won't bleed
Red because they're
one of us...
It bleeds red
because they're
human.
And when my time comes...
When your time comes...
When all our arguments
are finally silent...
When all our hatred
has finally disappeared...
When the world
has forgotten
what color we were...
I hope what remains
is not the hate
we carried...
But the love
we left behind.
Because underneath
every color...
Every culture...
Every nation...
Every race...
Every human being...
There is one undeniable truth:
We all bleed the same color.
So let's start
living like it.
By Shawn Muñoz
