Poetry & Spoken Word

Transborder Immigrant Tool Series: Cottonwoods and Animal Tracks Will Lead to Water in the Desert

Staff / Truthdig Sep 21, 2016 The seventh poem in "The Desert Survival Series / La serie de sobrevivencia del desierto" explains how clusters of cottonwood trees indicate a nearby spring, a crucial tip to surviving the desert border crossing between Mexico and the United States. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Transborder Immigrant Tool Series: In Life-or-Death Matters, Taste Is Relative, Testing Is Crucial

Staff / Truthdig Aug 31, 2016 The sixth poem in "The Desert Survival Series / La serie de sobrevivencia del desierto" tells us that while taste—like poetry—may seem irrelevant as one risks one's life crossing the US- Mexico border, it can be a means of survival The sixth poem in "The Desert Survival Series / La serie de sobrevivencia del desierto" tells us that while taste—like poetry—may seem irrelevant as one risks one's life crossing the U- Mexico border, it can be used as a means of survival . Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Transborder Immigrant Tool Series: Desert Fruits ‘Dethorned, Dethroned,’ Can Be ‘Delectably Edible’

Staff / Truthdig Aug 25, 2016 The fifth poem in "The Desert Survival Series/La serie de sobrevivencia del desierto" tells readers they can survive up to three weeks without eating in the desert, but that certain fruits can safely fill one's belly during the dangerous journey across the U.S.- Mexico border. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Transborder Immigrant Tool Series: Eat or Drink From Cactuses Only if You’ll Otherwise Die of Thirst

Staff / Truthdig Aug 24, 2016 The fourth poem in "The Desert Survival Series/La serie de sobrevivencia del desierto" gives readers pointers on which cactuses to eat and how, warning that many can be harmful. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Transborder Immigrant Tool Series: Learn Desert Secrets From Bedouins and Indigenous Travelers

Staff / Truthdig Aug 17, 2016 The third poem in "The Desert Survival Series/La serie de sobrevivencia del desierto" points readers toward ancient lessons for survival in the desert at the U.S.-Mexico border. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Transborder Immigrant Tool Series: ‘Climb or Walk in the Morning’ and Imitate the Sidewinder

Staff / Truthdig Aug 10, 2016 The second poem in "The Desert Survival Series/La serie de sobrevivencia del desierto" offers tips about the best times of day to undertake the most arduous parts of the journey across the U.S.-Mexico border. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Transborder Immigrant Tool Series: Poetry Built for Survival on the U.S.- Mexico Border (Multimedia)

Staff / Truthdig Aug 8, 2016 A series of 24 bilingual poems, titled "The Desert Survival Series/La serie de sobrevivencia del desierto," forms part of the Transborder Immigrant Tool software, designed to augment low-cost cellphones to provide poetry and a simple navigation system for immigrants crossing the Mexico-U.S. border. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Claudia Rankine: Because White Men Can’t Police Their Imaginations, Black Men Are Dying (Video)

Staff / Truthdig Jul 12, 2016 In an NPR interview, the poet discusses race in America and reads a poem she wrote in the aftermath of the deaths of Philando Castile and Alton Sterling, who were shot and killed by police officers. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Truthdig Wins Five Southern California Journalism Awards

Staff / Truthdig Jun 27, 2016 Truthdig made a strong showing at the 58th annual Southern California Journalism Awards, presented by the Los Angeles Press Club on Sunday night. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

‘Big Stink, Necessary Evil’: A Poem That Will Change Your Perspective on the Atomic Bombings (Audio)

Staff / Truthdig May 25, 2016 Jill McDonough’s poem on the planes that followed and photographed the atomic bombs the U.S. dropped in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan during World War II is a harrowing depiction of the justifications that follow mass destruction. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Remembering the Rev. Daniel Berrigan, Jesuit Priest and Peace Activist

Staff / Truthdig May 2, 2016 He was a man of the cloth and a man of letters, but most of all, Berrigan was a man of peace. He was also, as it happened, the man whom Kurt Vonnegut went so far as to call "Jesus as a poet." Dig deeper ( 8 Min. Read )

‘World Within World’: A Poem About a Haunting Image That Sums Up American Imperialism (Audio)

Staff / Truthdig Mar 31, 2016 David Ray begins his powerful poem with a rumination on a photograph of an American airman hitting golf balls on an aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf The image was published in The New York Times in 2003 David Ray begins his powerful poem with a rumination on a photograph of an American airman hitting golf balls on an aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )