We Are All Born Free
Poems From Guantánamo
The detainees speak
Edited by Marc Falkoff
Synopsis:
Since 2002, at least 775 men have been held at the military prison at Guantánamo Bay. According to Department of Defense data, fewer than half of them are accused of committing any hostile act against the United States or its allies. In hundreds of cases, even the circumstances of their initial detainment are questionable.
Many of the detainees are not allowed regular use of pen or paper, so some of the original verses were written in toothpaste, and some scratched into Styrofoam cups with pebbles. That any survived at all is an amazing feat. Not to mention the tireless efforts of pro bono lawyers, who submitted each line to Pentagon scrutiny – the United States military feared that detainees would smuggle coded messages out of the camp. Some of the poems are written by seasoned writers, others by new poets, thus the writing is raw and fresh.
'Poetry has been defined as the imagination pressing back against the pressures of reality, and these poems from Guantanamo are a vivid proof of the rightness of that definition. Here are voices crying de profundis, yet the very fact of this articulation constitutes a victory, a guarantee of the spirit's indomitable aspiration towards freedom and justice.' Seamus Heaney
| ISBN | 978-1-58729-606-2 |
|---|---|
| Publisher | University of Iowa Press |
| Date | 17 Sep 2007 |
| Format | Hardback, 84 pages |
| Price | £8.95 |
‘At last, Guantánamo has found its voice.’ – Gore Vidal
‘The verses provide a harrowing insight into the torments and fading hopes of the prisoners. Only two Guantánamo inmates have been charged with a crime.’ – The Independent
‘The poems in this collection were written against enormous odds. The men detained in Guantánamo Bay are routinely held in solitary confinement, condemned without a fair trail, many of them tortured. Through it all, some have taken sanctuary in poetry, and through this small volume we hear their voices and glimpse their innermost feelings. Their poems are a remarkable and moving testament to the power of the human spirit.’ – Kate Allen, director, Amnesty International UK
Contents
Acknowledgements
Notes on Guantánamo, an introduction by Marc Falkoff
Forms of Suffering in Muslim Prison Poetry, a preface by Flagg Miller
They Fight for Peace, Shaker Abdurraheem Aamer
O Prison Darkness, Abdulaziz
I Shall Not Complain, Abdulaziz
To My Father, Abdullah Thani Faris al Anazi
Lions in the Cage, Ustad Badruzzaman Badr
Homeward Bound, Moazzam Begg
Death Poem, Jumah al Dossari
They Cannot Help, Shaikh Abdurraheem Muslim Dost
Cup Poem 1, Shaikh Abdurraheem Muslim Dost
Cup Poem 2, Shaikh Abdurraheem Muslim Dost
Two Fragments, Shaikh Abdurraheem Muslim Dost
First Poem of My Life, Mohammed el Gharani
Humiliated in the Shackles, Sami al Haj
The Truth, Emad Abdullah Hassan
Is It True? Osama Abu Kabir
Hunger Strike Poem, Adnan Farhan Abdul Latif
I Am Sorry, My Brother, Othman Abdulraheem Mohammed
Terrorist 2003, Martin Mubanga
I Write My Hidden Longing, Abdulla Majid al Noaimi, the Captive of Dignity
My Heart Was Wounded by the Strangeness, Abdulla Majid al Noaimi, the Captive of Dignity
Ode to the Sea, Ibrahim al Rubaish
Even if the Pain, Siddiq Turkestani
Where the Buried Flame Burns, an afterword by Ariel Dorfman
Watch and listen online
- Watch Andrew Motion and Riz Ahmed reading and commenting on the poems
- Poet laureate Andrew Motion reads Two Fragments by Muslim Dost (mp3)
- Actor Riz Ahmed reads Death Poem by Jumah al Dossari (mp3)
Further information
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