Activist Poet coming to Adams State College (04-02-08)
Appreciate the Iraqi people and experience their struggles, through the eyes of a poet. David Smith-Ferri, activist poet, will speak at Adams State College at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 15, in Carson Auditorium. The event is sponsored by the Adams State Newman Club, Cross Cultural Center, English Program, and Grand Valley Peace and Justice of Grand Junction.
Smith-Ferri presentation is multimedia, with poetry and slideshow from trips to Iraq and Jordan. Through poetry, stories, and slides, Smith-Ferri will attempt to bring the people he has met into our presence. Against a background of facts and analysis about conditions in Iraq and in Jordan, this presentation will focus on both the human cost of the invasion/occupation and the effort by Iraqi people to resist its traumatic effects. "I hope to portray the resilience, courage, and decency of the Iraqi people I've met," Smith-Ferri says. "Everyday, Iraqi people - in Iraq and in exile - resist the degrading effects of violence and occupation, doing everything they can to care for themselves, their families, and their neighbors, and to provide a future for their children."
Smith-Ferri will describe a new program of assistance to Iraqi refugees who live in Jordan and Syria. Called the Direct Aid Initiative (DAI), this program is a collaboration with Iraqi people who have fled the violence in their country and now live in increasing numbers in Amman and Damascus. By providing assistance for urgent medical needs, DAI seeks to support the efforts that Iraqis are already making to rebuild their lives. It is an act of friendship and justice, rather than of charity.
His newly released book, "Battlefield without Borders," portrays his encounters with Iraqi people and the events that have shaped their lives over the last eight years. Smith-Ferri wrote many of the poems in the Middle East: in Iraq during two visits to the country, and recently in Amman, Jordan. Smith-Ferri writes in language that is accessible and powerful, and in a voice that is grounded in his experience. His poems are both a reflection on that experience and an attempt to voice the longings and the perspective of people caught in the vortex of war - Iraqi people, the families of US soldiers, and others.
For more information about Smith-Ferri and the DAI visit the Web at battlefieldwithoutborders.org. For more information about the event contact the Adams State College Office of Campus Ministry at 719-587-7516.
