who am i?

hey
hold on
do not judge me by my name and pottu
or my earrings and ethnic dress

nah
i am not an indian
my journey on this earth
originated from the north of sri lanka
so what?
do not call me a sri lankan
that was for the passport
immigration officers
and visa forms

sri lanka
reminds me 

of war and oppression
bunkers and fighter jets

curfews and white vans

bodychecks at army checkpoints

that stripped me of my pride
multi barrel artilleries

that destroyed my home

forever

sri lanka stole my dignity
questioned my belongingness
forced an identity
that came with a flag
lion in the centre
a nail in my brain

where do I live now?
australia
a land of milk and honey
so what?
hold on
do not call me an australian
i do not belong here
the stolen land
white australia
the sovereignty was never ceded

my dear colonial grandpas!!!
and great grandpas!!!
what have you done to these lands?
what have you done to our ancestors?
what have you done to me?

i am
colonised

nationalised

recolonised 

and lost
i am
searching my roots
through the layers of histories
your histories
their histories

our histories
your violent project
of subjugation 
brown and black bodies

classified low than yours

stolen for generations

exploited and defeated

exhausted and dehumanised

look at my folks
proud of 

being

a sri lankan 

an australian
patriotism for what?
the country?
who drew the borders?
or who erased the borders?

who is assimilated?

who is marginalised?

who does benefit?

who does suffer?

sri lankans

australians

labels 

labels

just labels

so hold on

do not put me in your boxes
‘Sri Lankan’
‘Australian’

i am none of them.