African Poetry and Resistance

„Teach the nation poetry“ wrote Dr. Stella Nyanzi in one of her #45poems4freedom from Luzira women’s prison in Uganda. What has poetry to do with freedom and resistance? What does it mean for exiled, imprisoned and persecuted authors to write poems?

This evening is dedicated to African authors. They are activists for human rights, women‘s rights, freedom and the injustices that have persisted since colonialism. Because they spoke freely they were imprisoned in their home countries and are now in exile in Munich. Their poetry is an expression and part of this activism. It resonates where other language fails. It is poetic. It is political. And yet, what does it mean to be read by a German audience unfamiliar with African lyrical tradition?

This evening is an invitation to listen, to learn and to celebrate the literary voices of John Solomon Nabuyanda, Stella Nyanzi, and Yirgalem Fisseha Mebrahtu.

Photo: John Solomon Nabuyanda

Photo: Matte Derrick

Photo: Mario Steigerwald

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