Our seventh submitted poem comes from the poetess Heather Haley and is entitled “Purple Lipstick.” As Heather describes it, “Purple is the colour of a fresh bruise.” This poem confronts domestic violence through powerful imagery, a haunting voice and a climatic tension that you can only imagine.

Our 6th submitted poem comes from the poet Kamal Supreme and is entitled “The ‘N’ Word.” This is the most controversial of our submitted pieces. Kamal Supreme is taking a stand against a word that is perhaps the most vile of all words. “A few summers ago in Hackensack NJ and it was a beautiful day. I noticed a barber that I hadn’t seen in a couple of years and there was a lot of people outside and he shouted from about 60 feet away “What’s up my nigger?” and it felt more condescending to me than it did like a term of endearment. I knew the brother meant well, but when it was time to write some poetry, the event was still with me.”

Our 5th submitted poem comes from the poet Spoken Truth and is entitled “Blue in the Face.” Inspiration for this poem comes from current events in the news and for his desire to for change in peoples minds and attitudes. Truly a great poem to start off the New Year!

Our fourth featured video in a series of submitted videos comes from the poetess Baraka. “Be Strong” is a poem that has personal meaning to Baraka. This poem was written as a personal response to the continued building and road extensions on her home island of Waiheke, NZ. She currently performs for “Peace Not War UK.”

Our third video in a series of submitted videos comes from Poetic Justice. This amazing poem is entitled “War in Iraq” and was filmed at the African American Library in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. It is an amazing piece charged with emotion and world views. It is truly a remarkable poem.

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