Like most of my favs, I was turned on to the Palestinian-American poet/activist Suheir Hammad by HBO's Def Poetry Jam. It wasn't until I had the honor of seeing her spit live at a Palentininan students poetry night at my college, though, that I truly fell in love.
When you first see Suheir, the thing that gets you are her eyes. They're simultaneously soothing and arresting. Of course, she's absolutely gorgeous (which makes the words that come out of her mouth all the more surprising) but don't be misled. This is one deep chica. She delivers every word with a sincerity that is deliberate and purposeful.
Suheir understands life in paradox- Her writing hearkens back to her immigrant roots while illustrating her Brooklyn NYC life with hip hop fury. She extends that same complexity to the tales of others she constructs. With the eloquence of an expert weaver, she peppers tough topics (war, rape, love, heartache) with a fiery tenderness that is often lost in the modern spoken word movement.
In case you can't tell, I'm a fan:-) I think hers was actually the first poetry CD that I bought.
Among her many, many accolades, Suheir also currently holds the third place spot on The Poetry Foundation's list of Best Selling Books from Small Press (ZaatarDiva by Suheir Hammad - Cypher Books). She's been in the game a long time and has managed to still stay on top.
I've included a few of her better known works below. Enjoy:-)
Mike Check
What I Will
"I will not dance to your war drum
I will not lend my soul nor my bones to your war drum
I will not dance to your beating
I know that beating is lifeless
I know that skin you are hitting
it was alive once
hunted
stolen
stretched
I will not dance to your war drum"
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