Map
of Austin Poetry #159-1
Featured
Poetry Supplement
Theme:
Will Work For Peace
Upcoming
themes:
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#161
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#162
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This
week's theme, "Will Work For Peace," is the title of the
anthology published this year from Zeropanik Press. Editor Brett Axel
explains the title (from the dedication page):
"My
cousin, Miriam Axel-Lute, is both a member of my family of birth and
a member of my family of choice.
"On
November 22nd, 1998, Miriam and I participated in a demonstration in
Columbus, Georgia, imploring our government to close the US Army's
School of the Americas where we have trained and empowered Latin
American dictators to commit atrocities against their poor civilian
population. It was there that I wrote and held the sign 'Will Work
For Peace' which would become the title of this book. Miriam took the
photograph that is now on the back cover.
"Although I was a
guest at her parents' wedding before she was born, this was only the
second time we had met. Now, I cannot imagine a time when we did not
have each other.
"This
book is dedicated to Miriam Axel-Lute, to all of our families of
birth and all of our families of choice and to the day when this
emcompasses everyone."
Brett Axel, Editor
The
biography of WWFP's contributors, at the time of publication:
"Collectively, the
148 poets in this volume have published 400 books and CDs selling 60
million copies. They have been nominated for 35 Pulitzer Prizes,
winning 3, nominated for 19 American Book Awards winning 3, and
nominated for 177 Pushcart Prizes winning 18. They have received 100
other awards as well as 23 National Endowment for the Arts
Fellowships and 6 Guggenheim Fellowships. They edit or have edited
125 different literary journals, magazines, and anthologies and have
appeared in over 2000 including Best American Poetry 15 times. They
have been poet in residence at 9 colleges and professors at 75. They
have been members of 11 National Slam Teams and take home first place
(individually or as a team) 6 times.
"These poets have
made 11,000 appearances on six continents and written 150,000 poems.
They hold 85 college degrees. They have been seen on 65 television
programs and heard on 850 radio broadcasts."
Most
of the selections are taken directly from the anthology. All are by
WWFP contributors.
1."Neverland"
by Rod C. Stryker
2.
"time enough" by Marty McConnell
3.
"Irony" by Claiborne Walsh
4.
"Proof of Disorder" by Donald Hunter Sutherland
5.
"Maria" by Moshe Benarroch
6.
"She Won't Say She's Unhappy" by Amy Ouzoonian
7.
"The Houses of the Poor" by Barbara F. Lefcowitz
8.
"No Nuclear Night, Bhopal?" by Anjana Basu
9.
"And Guns Were Turned Into Revolution" by Larry Jaffe
1.
Rod C. Stryker is founder/editor of Sun Poetic Times in San Antonio.
Neverland
Yes,
I raged at the news,
bombs
in baby cribs,
oil
fires in the desert.
And
the murder of children
labeled mushrooms.
Still
I loved your smile in
the
bomb shelter,
the
play of your eyes in the hospital.
I
know joy when I hold
you
as the fighters thunder overhead.
And
I commit my love
to you by the light
of
the burning chapel.
©
Rod C. Stryker
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
2.
Marty McConnell, member of The Morrigan and the Union Square (13 Bar
Lounge/NYC) 2000 National Slam Team:
time
enough
the
second the war ends,
prostitute
Sadhana Mukherjee
will
be standing with a woman
in
a pastel sari
in
a Calcuttan alley.She will be
speaking
of condoms and unicorns,
of
health and the power of walking
away.
the
instant the world ends,
I
will be
plucking
my eyebrows
or
salting slugs
in
the garden.
©
Marty McConnell
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
3.
Claibie Walsh of Montrose, Alabama has a poem in WWFP titled "Teacup
Politics," but gave permission publish this very recent poem.
"If
more politicians knew poetry,
and more poets knew
politics,
I am convinced the
world would be
a little better
place in which to live."
~ John Fitzgerald
Kennedy
Irony
But
you see, John, you were wrong.
Poets
have always known politics.
Have
always sought out injustices
like
heat seeking missiles.
Put
it down on paper for ALL to see.
But
poets don't have money trails.
Poets
don't have papas who buy them offices
while
they cavort with movie stars.
Poets
have words. Words which
influence
nickel payments after many lines.
If
more politicians knew the discipline of poetry -
less
of greed, lust and power
maybe
then the world just might
be
a little better place .....just might
be
a place where we can all
live
and work and dream.
It's
a real nice idea but
then
poets have their politics too
Oh
yes, John, poets KNOW politics.
We
just don't cause enough aggravation.
to
pay with bullets or bangs, Baby,
only
memorialize people like you.
Sandburg
lived far longer.
©
Claiborne Schley Walsh
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
4.
Donald Hunter Sutherland is an Internet engineer, a founding member
of the Internet Literary Arts Poetry Contest and managing editor of
Recursive Angel at http://www.calldei.com/~recangel/
Proof
of Disorder
So
that the blood spilled in Hastings
Puddles
into pasty swells of dark sap,
And
then hardens into the Rorschach piecework
Of
gleaned over fossils, rather than guess...
We
offer you proof.
Proof
our ancestral faces
Scaled
these embattled walls
Burst
into courtyard and settled
Her
imperial colors with mace
And
sword and shiv, sure to be heard,
"The
manifest hour is near..."
Gods
barren prize of crowned nipples
Wagers
unaware in sleep
Still
to be certain that the Viet Congs'
Troop
markings, missile ledgers and shells
Of
oxidized metals are fingerprint clear.
We
offer you proof.
Evidence
of hypnotic anthems,
Bright
lights and bells and ceremony
That
baptized parades underfoot.
In
snippets of speech to be heard...,
"The
manifest hour is near.."
Let
Juris Prudence guide our united,
Indivisible,
god-fearing, comrades
Through
unethical terrains.
Yet
to be positive history's
Archives
are bound, sealed
with
the hand-twisted whipcords
And
lashed into time's redress,
Rather
than guess... We offer this proof.
©
David Hunter Sutherland
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
5.
Moshe Benarroch of Israel has books published in four languages. His
recent "Horses and Other Doubts" is available at
http://www.iuniverse.com/marketplace/bookstore/book_detail.asp?isbn=0%2D595%2D13733%2D4
Maria
I
met Maria in Paris
she
was from Venezuela
and
she asked something about antisemitism
I
explained about being a Jew in Europe
being
a Jew in school in France
about
Vichy
She
stared at me as if I was speaking Chinese
Then
she came to Jerusalem
and
in front of the western wall
I
told her the history of the Jews
from
Abraham to the Greeks the Roman
The
Arabs,
and
she kept staring at me as if
I
was an alien
She
didn't discuss, she didn't try to understand
antisemitism
She
just thought it was a crazy thing
coming
from a country where such word doesn't exist.
I
just hoped there were more people like her
looking
at you like a crazy man
when
you try to explain the hatred.
©
moshe benarroch
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
6.
Amy Ouzoonian has been published in various collections, and edited
the anthology, "Skyscrapers, Taxis and Tampax." Currently,
she lives in New Orleans.
She
Won't Say She's Unhappy
Sometimes
women don't lose
Their
wedding bands
While
doing the dishes.
©
Amy Ouzoonian
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
7.
Barbara F. Lefcowitz has won writing fellowships from National
Endowment for the Arts and The Rockefeller Foundation. She has
published 6 books of poetry. She currently lives in Bethesda, Md.
The
House of the Poor
The
houses of the poor resemble each other
like
the bellies of pregnant women,
whether
shaped from palm leaves,
warped
gray wood, twisted wire, cartons,
newsprint,
tin scraps, caked mud,
thatch,
rusty pans, cow dung;
whether
placed in India, Sumatra,
Mexico,
Cambodia, Jamaica,
The
Nation's Capital, USA.
We
stare, sneak a guilty snapshot --
preferably
through a window
illuminated
by a single orange --
convince
ourselves such matters
need
not concern us
anymore
than the lives of the no longer living.
©
Barbara Lefcowitz
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
8.
Anjana Basu's poetry has been published internationally. She taught
English Literature, briefly, at Calcutta University; works as an
advertising copywriter.
No
Nuclear Night, Bhopal?
Turpentine
grass grows over this cold steel town
its
black fingers lick the blue sky
and
the birds ooze down drip by drip
painted
out, painted dead.
One
night the sky split, spat bright blood red
colour
killed us
colour
ate the night
cannibal
colour
glowing
dust grows over this turpentine town
small
birds scream at night in dead droplets.
©
Anjana Basu
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
9.
LA poet Larry Jaffe has two poems in Will Work For Peace. He recently
wrote two new poems for Agnes Meadows' Poets for Palestine anthology.
Here is one of them.
And
Guns Were Turned Into Revolution
And
guns were turned into revolution
and
revolution into hate
and
so goes history
without
lessons learned
From
the revolution
distilled
pain
into
hate
begetting
hate
begetting
hate.
And
guns were turned into revolution
when
minds needed to be changed
and
hearts sought sanctuary
and
guns fired mindlessly
without
heart.
And
what about
Love
What
about
it?
And
guns were turned into revolution
blood
leaked into the streets
a
flood of triumph
of
moral victory
so
much life lost
a
justification of spirit
so
much conscience
relented.
And
what price
the
soul
what
price
the
soul?
And
guns were turned into revolution
and
villages were lost
and
tears were shed
But
the guns could not silence
the
crying
Could
not silence
the
crying.
And
guns were turned into revolution.
©
2000 lgjaffe