The poets anthologized in Misrepresented People: Poetic Responses to Trump's America bear witness to, rage against, and defy the misogyny, racism, homophobia, xenophobia, and authoritarian impulses that have always surrounded us, but that are incarnated in the 45th president. At a time when large swaths of the nation, and of the world, have succumbed to a reality television ontology, the poems collected in this volume offer the terra firma of imaginative empathy only available to us through poetry. This anthology contains work from a variety of aesthetic stances, from poets whose personal backgrounds reflect the vibrant multiplicity of our democratic vistas at their most resplendent. These voices counter alternative facts and fake news with the earned communion and the restorative utterance of the lyric and of the narrative. Proceeds from this anthology will be donated to The National Immigration Law Center.
Contributors
Hanif Abdurraqib │ Kaveh Akbar │ MarÃa Isabel Ãlvarez │ Eloisa Amezcua │ Nin Andrews │ William Archila │ Fatimah Asghar │ Chaun Ballard │ Zeina Hashem Beck │ Bruce Bennett │ Ben-Oni │ Brian Brodeur │ Joel Brouwer │ Nickole Brown │ Tina Cane │ Cortney Lamar Charleston │ Jim Daniels │ Kyle Dargan │ Danielle Cadena Deulen │ Natalie Diaz │ Dante Di Stefano │ celeste doaks │ MartÃn Espada │ Joshua Jennifer Espinosa │ Blas Falconer │ Kate Falvey │ Brian Fanelli │ Ariel Francisco │ Christine Gelineau │ Maria Mazziotti Gillan │ Jennifer Givhan │ Tony Gloeggler │ Ruth Goring │ Sonia Greenfield │ George Guida │ Luke Hankins │ David Hernandez │ Luther Hughes │ Kenan Ince │ Maria Melendez Kelson │ Ruth Ellen Kocher │ Dana Levin │ Timothy Liu │ Denise Low │ George Ella Lyon │ J. Michael Martinez │ Shane McCrae │ Sjohnna McCray │ Erika Meitner │ Rajiv Mohabir │ Faisal Mohyuddin │ Kamilah Aisha Moon │ Abby E. Murray │ Susan Nguyen │ Matthew Olzmann │ Annette Oxindine │ Gregory Pardlo │ Craig Santos Perez │ Xandria Phillips │ Kevin Prufer │ Dean Rader │ Stella Vinitchi Radulescu │ Julian Randall │ Camille Rankine │ Alexandra Lytton Regalado │ Alison C. Rollins │ Alberto RÃos │ Liz Rosenberg │ Nicole Santalucia │ sam sax │ Lauren Schmidt │ Scherezade Siobhan │ Raena Shirali │ Clint Smith │ Patricia Smith │ Maggie Smith │ Christian Teresi │ Leah Tieger │ Vincent Toro │ Leah Umansky │ Emily Vogel │ Joe Weil │ Jameka Williams │ Phillip B. Williams │ Jane Wong │ Javier Zamora |
|
Founded on the theft of land and with an enslaved labor force, America has always had a complicated equation. These crimes are not historical, but continue through the twentieth century (stolen property and assets of Japanese citizens interned in camps, involuntary indentured labor of the imprisoned population) and into our present day. Only by examining rigorously and critically these foundational values can we reckon with the creation of a better and more just future for all those who live on this land. The poets in this anthology bring a spirit of not just resistance and dissent, but of creating that new future.
—Kazim Ali
Repressive regimes = urgent poetry. It's a terrible ratio. Today the powerful poets of Misrepresented People respond to our current tyrannies—and our presiding tyrant, Donald Trump—with unbelievable intensity and the richest, most diverse musical tones and gaits. What exacting laments, what soulful sorrows, what justice-driven hungers run through this vital gathering, where "Rage is a promise kept," as Sjohnna McCray sings. So maybe a poem never changed anyone's vote. But I'm emboldened by these poets, as I believe poetry changes—it deepens, widens, enchants, enlivens, and empowers—every single reader's mind. Let's name the brutal, resist the greedy, condemn the unjust, and in Timothy Liu's words defend "this scorned tract of earth called home." And let's do it with song.
—David Baker
|
