Remi Kanazi
Encyclopedia
Remi Kanazi is a Palestinian-American performance poet and human rights
activist based in New York City
. He has edited a volume of hip hop
, poetry and art, Poets for Palestine (2008), and published the first collection of his own poetry, Poetic Injustice: Writings on Resistance and Palestine, in 2011. He tours widely.
who fled Palestine
when the state of Israel
was established in 1948. Kanazi's maternal grandmother came from Jaffa
and was highly pregnant with his mother when she was forced to leave; his father, a physician, left Haifa
as a child when his family fled.
Kanazi was born in Massachusetts
in 1981, growing up as "the brownest thing going in a small western Massachusetts white Catholic town". As a child, he rejected his ethnic heritage and tried to blend in with his environment: "I wanted McDonald’s, I wanted Coke, I was the fat kid who didn’t care [...]." However, his grandmother's frequent wistful memories of Jaffa nurtured a love for Palestine in him that reasserted itself later on, when he connected with other Arab Americans in college.
in mid-2001 and began writing, especially so after 9/11, wishing to counter growing misconceptions about Arabs. He read voraciously, trying to form his own opinion on the situation in the Middle East, and began performing his poetry. Moving from his conservative upbringing to progressive politics, he was inspired by seeing Def Poetry Jam on Broadway
in 2004, and by artists like Suheir Hammad
and Carlos Andres Gomez: "It blew my mind how spoken word was so progressive and interlinked with socially conscious hip hop; it moved me in a way I wanted to emulate."
A self-described "angry poet", Kanazi writes and performs political poetry addressing topics such as human rights, Palestine, Iraq
and identity, criticizing American double standards of justice with respect to Iraq and Palestine: "I write a lot of angry pieces. All you gotta do is turn on CNN to write a poem. Thanks to our government and media, I’m never devoid of creativity." He says his opposition to the war in Iraq is not motivated by anti-Americanism, but by his being a humanist, speaking out as a human being against injustices perpetrated in the service of money and power. "I’m not a nationalist, I’m not an ethnocentrist. This isn’t about me being a Palestinian or me being an Arab. It’s about a system of oppression and what’s being done to a people. So whether you’re talking about police brutality or the US-Mexico border or Afghanistan or the war in Iraq or the plight of Palestinians, what they’re going through and the injustice that’s being perpetrated against them is what matters. And that’s what we’re working against – systems of oppression [...]." His live performances feature passionate poetry performances interspersed with humorous commentary.
Kanazi is the editor of Poets for Palestine (Al Jisser Group, August 2008), a collection of hip hop
, poetry and art featuring Palestinian poets such as Suheir Hammad
, Nathalie Handal
, Fady Joudah
, Annemarie Jacir
, Mahmoud Darwish
, Naomi Shihab and Kanazi himself, as well as African American
poets Patricia Smith and Amiri Baraka
. Proceeds from the book go to a fund for U.S. cultural events featuring Arab artists. In 2011, Kanazi published Poetic Injustice: Writings on Resistance and Palestine, a volume of poetry including a CD; he has also been a writer in residence and an advisory board member for the Palestine Writing Workshop, teaching spoken word poetry to youngsters in Palestine. He has appeared on Al Jazeera English and BBC Radio
and has toured North America, the UK, and the Middle East, with appearances at the Palestine Festival of Literature
and at Poetry International
. He runs the PoeticInjustice.net website.
, likened Kanazi's Poetic Injustice to the work of Gil Scott-Heron
in its exploration of identity, oppression and resistance. The Pulitzer Prize
winner Chris Hedges
has commented positively about Kanazi's poetry, saying, "There is more truth, and perhaps finally more news, in Remi Kanazi's poems than the pages of your daily newspaper." His poetry was similarly praised by the South-African former minister Ronnie Kasrils
, who considered it "a shining example of tomorrow's Palestine." Novelist and Booker Prize winner John Berger
has described Kanazi as "a voice which refuses to be silenced".
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
activist based in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He has edited a volume of hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
, poetry and art, Poets for Palestine (2008), and published the first collection of his own poetry, Poetic Injustice: Writings on Resistance and Palestine, in 2011. He tours widely.
Background
Kanazi is the son of Palestinian refugees1948 Palestinian exodus
The 1948 Palestinian exodus , also known as the Nakba , occurred when approximately 711,000 to 725,000 Palestinian Arabs left, fled or were expelled from their homes, during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and the Civil War that preceded it. The exact number of refugees is a matter of dispute...
who fled Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
when the state of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
was established in 1948. Kanazi's maternal grandmother came from Jaffa
Jaffa
Jaffa is an ancient port city believed to be one of the oldest in the world. Jaffa was incorporated with Tel Aviv creating the city of Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel. Jaffa is famous for its association with the biblical story of the prophet Jonah.-Etymology:...
and was highly pregnant with his mother when she was forced to leave; his father, a physician, left Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
as a child when his family fled.
Kanazi was born in Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
in 1981, growing up as "the brownest thing going in a small western Massachusetts white Catholic town". As a child, he rejected his ethnic heritage and tried to blend in with his environment: "I wanted McDonald’s, I wanted Coke, I was the fat kid who didn’t care [...]." However, his grandmother's frequent wistful memories of Jaffa nurtured a love for Palestine in him that reasserted itself later on, when he connected with other Arab Americans in college.
Poetry
Kanazi moved to New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in mid-2001 and began writing, especially so after 9/11, wishing to counter growing misconceptions about Arabs. He read voraciously, trying to form his own opinion on the situation in the Middle East, and began performing his poetry. Moving from his conservative upbringing to progressive politics, he was inspired by seeing Def Poetry Jam on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
in 2004, and by artists like Suheir Hammad
Suheir Hammad
Suheir Hammad is a Palestinian-American poet, author and political activist. She was born in Amman, Jordan. Her parents were Palestinian refugees who immigrated along with their daughter to Brooklyn, New York City when she was five years old...
and Carlos Andres Gomez: "It blew my mind how spoken word was so progressive and interlinked with socially conscious hip hop; it moved me in a way I wanted to emulate."
A self-described "angry poet", Kanazi writes and performs political poetry addressing topics such as human rights, Palestine, Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and identity, criticizing American double standards of justice with respect to Iraq and Palestine: "I write a lot of angry pieces. All you gotta do is turn on CNN to write a poem. Thanks to our government and media, I’m never devoid of creativity." He says his opposition to the war in Iraq is not motivated by anti-Americanism, but by his being a humanist, speaking out as a human being against injustices perpetrated in the service of money and power. "I’m not a nationalist, I’m not an ethnocentrist. This isn’t about me being a Palestinian or me being an Arab. It’s about a system of oppression and what’s being done to a people. So whether you’re talking about police brutality or the US-Mexico border or Afghanistan or the war in Iraq or the plight of Palestinians, what they’re going through and the injustice that’s being perpetrated against them is what matters. And that’s what we’re working against – systems of oppression [...]." His live performances feature passionate poetry performances interspersed with humorous commentary.
Kanazi is the editor of Poets for Palestine (Al Jisser Group, August 2008), a collection of hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
, poetry and art featuring Palestinian poets such as Suheir Hammad
Suheir Hammad
Suheir Hammad is a Palestinian-American poet, author and political activist. She was born in Amman, Jordan. Her parents were Palestinian refugees who immigrated along with their daughter to Brooklyn, New York City when she was five years old...
, Nathalie Handal
Nathalie Handal
Nathalie Handal is a French-American poet and playwright of Palestinian origin. She has lived in Europe, the United States, the Caribbean, Latin America and the Arab world.-Biography:...
, Fady Joudah
Fady Joudah
Fady Joudah is a Palestinian-American poet and physician. He is the 2007 winner of the Yale Series of Younger Poets Competition for his collection of poems The Earth in the Attic.-Life:...
, Annemarie Jacir
Annemarie Jacir
Annemarie Jacir was born on January 17, 1974, she is a Palestinian filmmaker and poet.She has been working in independent cinema since 1994 and has written, directed and produced a number of award-winning films including Until When, A Few Crumbs for the Birds, and a Post Oslo History. She was...
, Mahmoud Darwish
Mahmoud Darwish
Mahmoud Darwish was a Palestinian poet and author who won numerous awards for his literary output and was regarded as the Palestinian national poet...
, Naomi Shihab and Kanazi himself, as well as African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
poets Patricia Smith and Amiri Baraka
Amiri Baraka
Amiri Baraka , formerly known as LeRoi Jones, is an American writer of poetry, drama, fiction, essays, and music criticism...
. Proceeds from the book go to a fund for U.S. cultural events featuring Arab artists. In 2011, Kanazi published Poetic Injustice: Writings on Resistance and Palestine, a volume of poetry including a CD; he has also been a writer in residence and an advisory board member for the Palestine Writing Workshop, teaching spoken word poetry to youngsters in Palestine. He has appeared on Al Jazeera English and BBC Radio
BBC Radio
BBC Radio is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927. For a history of BBC radio prior to 1927 see British Broadcasting Company...
and has toured North America, the UK, and the Middle East, with appearances at the Palestine Festival of Literature
Palestine Festival of Literature
PalFest is an annual event that aims to bring a cultural festival of international standard to audiences in Palestine to assert "the power of culture over the culture of power." In recognition of how restricted movement is for Palestinians the Festival travels throughout Palestine, staging events...
and at Poetry International
Poetry International
Poetry International is a literary journal published annually by San Diego State University Press that was established in 1997. The journal has since its 4th issue included a section focusing on poetry in translation from one nation. Poetry International is supported by a grant from the Edwin...
. He runs the PoeticInjustice.net website.
Reception
Alexander Billet, writing for Electronic IntifadaElectronic Intifada
The Electronic Intifada is a not-for-profit, independent online publication which covers the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from a Palestinian perspective, "aimed at combating the pro-Israeli, pro-American spin" its editors believe exists in mainstream media accounts.-History:EI was founded by Ali...
, likened Kanazi's Poetic Injustice to the work of Gil Scott-Heron
Gil Scott-Heron
Gilbert "Gil" Scott-Heron was an American soul and jazz poet, musician, and author known primarily for his work as a spoken word performer in the 1970s and '80s...
in its exploration of identity, oppression and resistance. The Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
winner Chris Hedges
Chris Hedges
Christopher Lynn Hedges is an American journalist, author, and war correspondent, specializing in American and Middle Eastern politics and societies...
has commented positively about Kanazi's poetry, saying, "There is more truth, and perhaps finally more news, in Remi Kanazi's poems than the pages of your daily newspaper." His poetry was similarly praised by the South-African former minister Ronnie Kasrils
Ronnie Kasrils
Ronald Kasrils is a South African politician. He was Minister for Intelligence Services from 27 April 2004 to 25 September 2008...
, who considered it "a shining example of tomorrow's Palestine." Novelist and Booker Prize winner John Berger
John Berger
John Peter Berger is an English art critic, novelist, painter and author. His novel G. won the 1972 Booker Prize, and his essay on art criticism Ways of Seeing, written as an accompaniment to a BBC series, is often used as a university text.-Education:Born in Hackney, London, England, Berger was...
has described Kanazi as "a voice which refuses to be silenced".
Quotes
- "I was a dark kid, trying to be a white kid, acting like a black kid."
- "Just because your house is beautiful does not mean that the bones you built it on have fully decomposed."
- "Every time I think of 9/11 / I see burning flesh / Dripping off the bones / Of Iraqi children in Fallujah."
- "Every time a suicide bombing strikes Israel, mass coverage of the tragedy begins instantly. Whether landing on the front page of The New York Times or taking up the headline block on CNN.com, the pain Israeli people endure is shown endlessly. Israelis do suffer. Suicide bombings are horrific. Nevertheless, Palestinian pain occurs far more frequently, and yet [is] often overlooked by the mainstream American media."
- "I don’t want to coexist. I want to exist as a human being. And justice will take care of the rest."
Publications
- Poets for Palestine (ed.), Al Jisser, 2008, ISBN 9781930083097
- Poetic Injustice – Writings on Resistance and Palestine, RoR Publishing, 2011, ISBN 9780615421667
External links
- Poetic Injustice – Writings on Resistance and Palestine
- Remi Kanazi's Facebook page
- Remi Kanazi on TwitterTwitterTwitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
- Videos of poetry performances
- "US Media Bias: Covering Israel/Palestine", by Remi Kanazi, countercurrents.org
- "A Poem for Gaza", by Remi Kanazi, scoop.co.nz