Poets Against War continues the tradition of socially engaged poetry by creating venues for poetry as a voice against war, tyranny and oppression.

Melissa Hamilton

I just turned twenty-four yesterday, and I'm wondering how the backdrop of my twenties is still war.

This poem attempts to confront the comfortable silences that occur everyday in regards to the war.

Feminist, Audre Lorde, phrases it much better than I can when she states, "When we speak, we are afraid our words will not be heard or welcomed. But when we are silent, we are still afraid. So it is better to speak."

an interruption of one's routine during war

i saw a man break today

sweaty palms clutching a newspaper
ink rubbing off onto his fingers

eyes wide,
glittered with half-formed tears
he asked me:

“is this real?”

i kept my face still.

inside,
we are wailing
faces like banshees
in a tight crowd

pounding the paper in disbelief,
he pays for his latte
and goes his separate way.

there is never
solitude in silence,
nor even comfort.

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