Walidah Imarisha
Walidah Imarisha is an educator, activist, writer, and poet. She is the author of “Dirty Faces: Three Stories of Crime, Prison, and Redemption” (2016) and the poetry collection “Scars/Stars” (2013). Imarisha co-edited “Another world is possible: Conversations in a time of terror” (2002) and the anthology of short stories “Octavia’s Brood: Science Fiction Stories From Social Justice Movements” (2015). Imarisha is an Assistant Professor and the Director of the Center for Black Studies at Portland State University. She has taught at Stanford University, Pacific Northwest College of the Arts, and Oregon State University. She is one of the founders and first editor of AWOL, a political hip-hop magazine.
About her work in WOV II:
In “Poetry”, Imarisha personifies the literary work of the same name. The poem narrates the story of Poetry, in several stages of its life - It has had a hard, violent and lonely life but in the end, Poetry seeks forgiveness and love. The piece is exceedingly visual. Poetry takes different forms in the mind of the reader based on previous conceptions of what Poetry, and on who the reader imagines when reading about violence and suffering.
“Prayer for Assata” is dedicated to Assata Shakur, a former member of the Black Liberation Army. Imarisha makes direct references to several instances of Shakur’s life, such as her being shot, spending time in solitary confinement, and being on the FBI’s most-wanted list. Ultimately, the poem stands as an homage to “that strong limbed sista”, the exiled activist, to whom Imarisha wishes “Someone/ Who lets her be / Simply solely wholly / Assata”.
You can learn more about her at walidah.com