By Carlos Bulosan [This poem] was written by Bulosan and mimeographed by members of the Cannery Union (UCAPAWA) to help generate funds for the defense of two union officers who were facing deportation because of legitimate but radical union activities. The plea for contributions attached here was printed on the …
Kali’s Blade by Michele Bautista Meritage Press, 2006 “This particular school of Kali, Kamatuuran School of Kalijin, goes beyond the dojo and really has given me a framework to both be and live artistry. I’m able to bridge to other experiences and knowledge whether at work or writing or performance. …
By Kathleen Joaquin Burkhalter We brought our daughter to the beach last summer. We placed her on a blanket under the glorious sun and watched her skin turn golden brown. Her complexion was redolent of mangoes and papayas and the soft sweetness of young coconuts newly taken from the tree. …
This issue focuses on the experiences of dislocated communities whose members have lived through some form of dispersal either by choice or by force. You, of the future, may wonder why in the year 2016 in the forging of a global cohesion among countries such dispersal and dislocation took place. …
What I remember most, when the night was longest and darkest, was the fesenjān and poetry. For what could be better, as my Persian friends would say, than pomegranate molasses and Hafez? And in the midst of being fed and read one’s fate, little acts of mercy had steadily rippled …
by Angelina M. Claver Come walk on the quiet side, to the meadows, gently. Take care not to tread on the downy fiddlehead or crush the shy fawn lilies, aquiver underfoot. Breathe. Rest awhile, by a fallen mother tree nursing buds of a new hemlock or a baby mulberry. Walk …
by Eileen R. Tabios [1] I forgot other boys like Samuel and Elwin whose bones became transparent…. I forgot imagination cannot alchemize air into protein…. I forgot an ascetic’s illusion of ecstasy will always be illusion due to its condition precedent: a suffering so unmitigated it hollowed non-survivors from children …
By Remé Grefalda Flung to the summer winds Lucas Antonio Floats lightly on a wave a millisecond scar Lucas lay still and mute Within your cavernous ache Encircled by your tidal wave Of tears Then and even Now While his ashes soar astray Lucas nimbly clears his way into Your …
by Alma Anonas-Carpio I have lit the flame. I summon thee, call out thy name, Hold you, lay my claim. Transcend memory, Traverse this path of coldest stone. Break me, make me whole. Stand with me, please take My hand and raise me to the dais. Don’t let me touch …