Hello Ben Langhinrichs . I'm Charlie and I'm helping to judge Round 73 of "Invalid Item" , so I thought I would leave a bit of feedback on your poem. Thanks for sharing your writing with us. I hope this review finds you well.


Title/General Thoughts/Subject Matter: After reading the poem, I really like the title. It works well in two different ways, the safety of having people stand with the oppressed and the safety, as in safety pin, for which the poem is written. I really love the cultural relevance of this poem, not only back in November, but in the weeks and months since then. I think it's going to be a long few years and we need people to stand together and stand up for each other more than ever.


What Worked: For some reason, I love the recognition that a safety pin is 'not much' in terms of size or maybe monetary value, but it is much in the way of representing a promise made to the oppressed. The first two lines of the poem really hooked me. I know it's a Cinquain, but I could see those lines being drawn out into a longer free verse poem if you were ever inclined to do so.


Technical Issues/Suggestions: This poem followed the syllable pattern of a Cinquain perfectly. It isn't the style I'm used to seeing because typically the first line is a noun and then the subsequent lines describe that noun and the feelings about that noun. Still, I can't get over my love for those opening lines. The only thing that was a bit off to me was the lead into the third line: A safety pin/pinned. The double 'pin' was used just a bit too close together for my personal taste.


Final Thoughts: Overall, I enjoyed this poem and the message behind it quite a bit. I think it's important to talk about how people are standing together against the hate because I've seen it time and time again in the past year. Thanks again for sharing with us and I wish you luck!


Best wishes,





My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Get CASH!" .