Roger Williams
who founded the state
of Rhode Island
in 1636 for religious freedom
who in 1643 wrote
"A Key into the Language of America"
marking the first study
of an American Indian language
(mostly of Algonquin Narragansett)
in English
as well as a deliberate effort
to acknowledge the Other
probably should be referenced
in the news of late
given the pertinence
of his values
to our world today
and maybe even the United States
with its vitally important
separation of church and state
and all
so here is at least one.
This poem © 2014 Emily Cooper.
