seen from Türkiye
seen from Malaysia
seen from Netherlands
seen from China
seen from Germany
seen from Italy
seen from China
seen from Türkiye
seen from China
seen from Guatemala
seen from Azerbaijan
seen from Russia
seen from Singapore
seen from China
seen from Malaysia
seen from Russia
seen from Japan
seen from Malaysia
seen from Russia
seen from Japan
The Sibling Rivalry Press Foundation is proud to host the Undocupoets Fellowship, sponsored by Amazon Literary Partnership. STATEMENT: UNDOCUPOETS STATEMENT ON ZERO-TOLERANCE POLICIES (June 19, 201…
The mission of Undocupoets is to promote the work of undocumented poets and raise consciousness about the structural barriers that they face in the literary community. We believe in supporting all poets, regardless of immigration status.
I write because queer immigrant experiences matter, because I am a tired, queer immigrant/permanent resident, because I have been tired for a long time...
Thank you to Christopher Soto for this gathering of bold voices against the dehumanization of immigrants—up now on the Poetry Foundation blog. I contributed a small statement (quoted above) that feels like it might become a full piece (poem? essay?) in the near future. Here are two statements from two writers I admire immensely:
I grew up in Europe at a time when the trending, right wing rhetoric was to send the children of all immigrants "back to where they came from." I had the feeling, at times, that I had not really been born. That emptiness carried through. It's what a child, in particular, might internalize as worthlessness. What could be more cruel? Yet, and we already know this: this is how colonization works. It strips you of your human-ness, your connection to place and home. Dear Government, no.
—Bhanu Kapil
&
DACA, at my most optimistic, is a long overdue reconciliatory action by a bifurcated governing body that creates a citizenship path for those most essential to the renewal of the vivacity in the United States of America. At my severest, DACA appears to be the furthering of centuries of hegemony by an empire woefully, purposefully insistent on oppression of the many for the benefit of the few, creating a dual revenue of money and obedience. The difference between me being a citizen of the U.S.A. and an immigrant is 18 miles, the length of the New York City Tune Up Marathon, the amount of books in Strand Book Store, only half the size of Disney World, or the speed at which a "cheetah" robot can run per hour on a treadmill. In many ways, a border is no more than a razor. Government originated as a nautical term, meaning to steer, which they are doing towards capsizal. We must resist.
—David Tomas Martinez
And everyone should definitely check out (if you haven't already) these collections by members of Undocupoets—Soto's Sad Girl Poems, Janine Joseph's Driving Without a License, Marcelo Hernandez Castillo's forthcoming (from BOA!) Cenzontle, Javier Zamora's just-released Unaccompanied.
“Cenzóntle,” Marcelo Hernandez Castillo
____________
because the bird flew before there was a word for flight
years from now there will be a name for what you and I are doing
I licked the mango of the sun you blew out the flame from a match
the night was heavier than the light it hushed
____________
the pockets of unsteady light the bone–– the seed inside the bone––
the echo and its echo and its shape
Hojas de roble folded into dolls kneeling in prayer
____________
call it wound call it beginning
the bird’s beak twisted into a small circle of awe
you called it cutting apart
I called it song
2019 Undocupoets Fellowship
Overview
The Undocupoets Fellowship, in partnership with Amazon Literary Partnership and the Sibling Rivalry Press Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit private foundation, will grant TWO $500 fellowships, with no strings attached, to undocumented or previously undocumented poets to help defray the cost of poetry-related fees.
Submissions Process
This fellowship is intended for any writers who are currently undocumented or who were formerly undocumented in the United States.
Please submit up to 10 pages of poetry, with no more than one poem per page, per individual. In addition, please include a cover letter with a bio and brief description of your current work or manuscript-in-progress.
At least one of the two fellowships awarded will be given to LGBTQ Undocumented poets, per an agreement with Sibling Rivalry Press. Please indicate on your bio if you identify as LGBTQ.
While no single fellowship recipient will receive more than $500 on any given year, fellowships can be awarded to the same individual for multiple years.
Deadline: 11:59 PM, January 31, 2019
Please apply via Submittable here.
For more information, visit: https://siblingrivalrypress.com/undocupoets-fellowship/
“In Support of Violence,” Christopher Soto
Two hundred Indian women killed their rapist on the courtroom floor of Nagpur in 2004. When Police tried to arrest lead perpetrators // the women responded “arrest us all.”
In this windowless room // where he poured acid & stole money // arrest us all
In this windowless room [shut like the gut of an ox] arrest us all
Gored & gorge are words to describe a wound Gorgeous // the opening
Of a blade inside his chest Gorgeous // black galaxies, growing
Across his skin, we threw rocks & chili pepper
Arrest us all
On the railroad tracks // where he murdered our sisters & left their dead bodies
On the railroad tracks // where black ants began // biting crowns into
Calves // The world is spinning and we’re // falling from its bed
How could we mourn? He kept killing // & threatening // & raping us
Arrest us all On the red puddle // on the white courthouse floor
Arrest us all We sawed his penis off // & tore his house // to rubble
Look // the streets are swarming // in protests [welcome home]
The night is neon & buzzing like bumblebees
We never wanted to kill // only to stay alive // &
We waited like virgins // for the gentleness of strangers // to help or empathize.
"Dear Poets and Poetry Publishers,
I’m writing with a special announcement regarding our prizes, but first, I want to thank Marcelo Hernandez Castillo, Christopher Soto, and Javier Zamora. In recent weeks, these three poets have been working to ensure that first-book awards for poets, including the Academy of American Poets’ Walt Whitman Award, are more inclusive of young poets living in the United States.
That’s why, on behalf of the Academy of American Poets, I am pleased to announce that today we are expanding the eligibility criteria not only for our Walt Whitman Award, but also for all of the Academy of American Poets Prizes..."
We are pleased to announce expanded eligibility criteria for all of our Academy of American Poets Prizes.
