For the Gaza in All of Us...
I first met Suheir Hammad in about '96. At that time, I had the honor of working with my mentor, friend, professional and spiritual advisor Marie Brown. Marie Brown Associates was located at 625 Broadway. 625 Broadway was a collection of offices of many different types of businesses. There was an Inner-city program, an Independent Film association, and even a music-publishing company. Amidst all of these offices were two very meaningful ones to me: Marie Brown Associates and Writers and Readers. Writers and Readers was this publishing company founded by Glenn Thompson. Glenn Thompson was a visionary. He published folks such as Huey P. Newton and Suheir Hammad. Suheir, about my age, had just published her first book Born Palestinian, Born Black. Glenn was dedicated to giving voice to every one. The existence of his publishing company, and all of its imprints, was exclusively dedicated to producing stories that balanced the rather skewed perception that can be cultivated throu...