“Tell the world what’s happening”: Uyghur refugees on escaping genocide in China
From Connecticut Public (WNPR) | Part of the Audacious with Chion Wolf series | 50:00
On this episode of Audacious, meet Zumrat Dawut and Tahir Izgil, two Uyghur refugees who fled to America to escape the genocide against their people in northwest China.
"Never again."
That was the vow the international community took after the Holocaust, pledging to never repeat the kind of actions that led to the death of over 6 million Jewish people.
Unfortunately, the horrors of genocide have been seen again - in Armenia, in Rwanda, and now, in China.
On this episode of Audacious, meet a woman who was assaulted and forcibly sterilized while in a concentration camp. And a celebrated writer talks about his new memoir, Waiting to Be Arrested at Night: A Uyghur Poet's Memoir of China's Genocide.
Today's episode contains subject matter that is not suitable for children.
GUESTS:
- Julie Millsap: Government Relations Manager at Uyghur Human Rights Project
- Omer Kanat: Executive Director of Uyghur Human Rights Project
- Zumrat Dawut: A Uyghur woman whose experience of escaping Chinese concentration camps was the basis for a story that won the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for Illustrated Reporting. She is interpreted in this interview by Zubayra Shamseden
- Tahir Izgil: Uyghur poet, filmmaker, and author of Waiting to Be Arrested at Night: A Uyghur Poet's Memoir of China's Genocide. He is interpreted in this interview by historian and co-author, Joshua Freeman
Words over weapons: When anti-war poems go viral
From Connecticut Public (WNPR) | Part of the Audacious with Chion Wolf series | 50:00
On this episode of Audacious, meet three women whose anti-war poetry about the conflict in Gaza, and the violence under Russian president Vladimir Putin, went viral.
When you think about the history of things that have gone viral, poetry is not usually what comes to mind. But as the latest surges in violence rage across the world, it turns out that poetry is something folks unite around.
Meet three people whose poems about war have gone viral, and find out how it both fed their purpose and made the world think.
GUESTS:
- Lena Khalaf Tuffaha: Palestinian American poet, essayist, and translator who has authored three books of poetry. She won the 2018 Washington State Book Award for Poetry for her book “Water & Salt” which contains her viral poem "Running Orders"
- AnnaLynne McCord: Actress who published a video of her reading a poem about if she had been Vladimir Putin's mother. She is the President of "Together1Heart" which empowers women and children victimized by human-trafficking and sexualized violence
- Danielle Weisberg: Comedy writer and writer’s assistant who’s worked on CONAN, Krapopolis, and The Simpsons where she was nominated for a WGA Award in Animation. Her work has also been featured in McSweeney’s, Buzzfeed, and The Huffington Post. Her poem was partially inspired by her mother, a school teacher in Topanga, California, who is currently fundraising for her classroom.
The playfulness of poetry with Andrew Dean Wright
From Connecticut Public (WNPR) | Part of the Audacious with Chion Wolf series | 50:01
Hartford-based poet, Andrew Dean Wright joins Chion around a fire in her backyard to talk about poetry on this episode of Audacious. Why this medium? What does it do to, and for him?
The first person in our series featuring poets around a fire in Chion’s backyard was Zulynette.
This time, meet Andrew Dean Wright. In addition to being a photographer, digital artist, and elegant roller skater, he is a curious, gentle, and powerful poet.
Enjoy this conversation between them, recorded in Hartford on August 24, 2022.
Listen to a recent Colin McEnroe Show featuring poets, Margaret Gibson, Yanyi, and Matthew Zapruder.
GUEST:
- Andrew Dean Wright: Hartford-based poet, artist, and roller skater
A fireside conversation with Hartford’s “Love Poet”, Olusanya Bey
From Connecticut Public (WNPR) | Part of the Audacious with Chion Wolf series | 50:00
On this episode of Audacious, hear from Hartford's "Love Poet" Olusanya Bey. He's featured in this third installment of a series of conversations with poets around a fire.
Olusanya Bey is many things, but he's best known as a “love poet."
But that title comes after much deep, philosophical pondering: What does writing about love do for - and to - him? Must he have a tangible muse? And how does a love of self affect love for others?
Hear Olusanya Bey in Chion’s backyard for this third installment of a series of conversations with poets around a fire.
Listen to the first installment with Zulynette.
Listen to the second installment with Andrew Dean Wright.
GUEST:
- Olysanya Bey: Poet, community organizer, a mindfulness instructor, and a teaching artist in Hartford
Poet Zulynette on “Seeing in the Dark”
From Connecticut Public (WNPR) | Part of the Audacious with Chion Wolf series | 50:00
Zulynette is a Hartford-based poet whose book, Seeing in the Dark, just came out. On this episode of Audacious, she joins Chion around a fire to talk about poetry, power, and names.
Zulynette needs no last name.
She’s a Hartford-based poet (among other things) whose book, Seeing in the Dark, just came out.
She joins Chion around a fire to talk about poetry, power, and, of course, names.
GUEST:
- Zulynette: Visual artist, social worker, host of The Creative Alchemist podcast, creative workshop facilitator, creator of A Little Bit of Death, and a poet. Her books are Building A Powerhouse (2017) and the recently-released Seeing In The Dark