Activists in Gaza rework a classic Palestinian resistance song from the first intifada to fit the BDS movement today.
In his debut collection of poetry, “Things You May Find Hidden in My Ear: Poems from Gaza,” Palestinian poet Mosab Abu Toha writes about everyday life Gaza: the siege, wars, poverty, and unemployment. Mondoweiss interviewed Abu Toha at his home in Gaza City about his collection and the stories behind his poems.
This is Palestine, the land of martyrs
That embraces the fearless woman, Shireen Abu Akleh
How dare anyone tell me
in these late years of my life
when I have seen everything and forgotten nothing
about the theft of an entire country
and the imprisonment of an entire people
that it is antisemitic
to believe in the rule of law
Palestinian American poet George Abraham talks with Mohammed El-Kurd in an expansive interview about Jerusalem, the revolutionary potential of poetry, and El-Kurd’s groundbreaking new book, Rifqa.
Susan Abulhawa reviews Mohammad el-Kurd’s stunning debut poetry collection, Rifqa: “Letting my eyes sweep over lines just once wasn’t nearly enough to take in the unbearable beauty of this book. The words that Mohammad assembles in his poems aren’t pulled from books or dictionaries. They are snatched from clouds, excised from his bones, excavated from Jerusalem’s fabled tales and the inscriptions on her storied stones, plucked from the creases in tank treads and history’s smoke.”
Kevin Hadduck had never met a Palestinian until five years ago when a student studying Latin walked into his office. This chance encounter led to Hadduck’s “Beloved Brother, Beloved Sister,” a book of poems from voices in Gaza.
Taha Muhammad Ali, a beloved poet from Nazareth who died in 2011, was a master of the ‘Palestinian Absurd’ and is remembered for his searing poems that mused on happiness and its limitations.
Mourid Barghouti, beloved Palestinian poet and the author of the stirring memoir “I saw Ramallah,” died earlier this month in Amman at the age of 76.