Poetry Against ICE (full performance and panel discussion)

Guante

5 days ago

In early February 2026, I invited Minnesota poets Ollie Schminkey, Isha Camara, and SEE MORE PERSPECTIVE to this asynchronous panel discussion and performance, sharing poems related to the ongoing federal occupation of Minnesota, as well as some insight into what makes political poems “work.” Here is the FULL VIDEO, with some additional notes below.

Here is an MP3 audio file, if you prefer to listen, podcast-style (right-click and “save link as”)

Music by SEE MORE PERSPECTIVE.

This video is also a fundraiser: If this is valuable to you, we’re asking people to consider supporting CTUL (Centro De Trabajadores Unidos En La Lucha)’s emergency & rapid response fund.

The idea behind this event was (1) an excuse to keep sharing that CTUL fundraiser; (2) a cool poetry event people could watch on their own time, from home (especially when so many are minimizing trips outside; we want to be in community with you too); and (3) a kind of counterpoint to my last big virtual event, where we focused on what artists can do beyond our art. That’s still an important conversation, but I wanted to also make time to dive into the art too, especially since I’m in community with so many poets, songwriters, and other creative people.

This conversation is about sharing—aside from some great poems—specific tools and tactics for other people who do creative communication work. I got to “talk shop” with three artists I respect, and I think we uncovered some really valuable insights about what works when we choose to speak out.

I totally understand if this video doesn’t get a ton of views or find a mass audience; it is two hours long, after all. But my hope is that it can be useful to YOU. Watch it in chunks over your lunchbreaks, or listen to the audio during a long drive, or even just read the “short version” aka this bank of pullquotes.

ADDITIONAL LINKS

My landing page for resources and things I want to share related to the situation in Minnesota: this page contains calls-to-action (for those who want to get involved or support the work from elsewhere), plus a few specific arts-related highlights:
- The meeting notes from our big “how artists can show up beyond our art” event.
- A “poetry playlist” of poems about immigration, the movement of people, and a world without borders – including many we discuss in the video above.
- If you like asynchronous content, here’s a whole class I facilitate on “political poetry and the anthemic impulse”
POEMS PEOPLE SHARED DURING THE CONVERSATION:
- Ollie Schminkey – Land of 10,000 Lakes
- Isha Camara – Notes on Renee, on Minneapolis
- SEE MORE PERSPECTIVE – Salt of the Earth + Spring is Coming
- Kyle Tran Myhre – Discourse (Let Your Heart Be a Whistle)
- Andrea Gibson – two poems from You Better Be Lightning
- Fatimah Asghar – If They Come For Us
- José Olivarez – When We Win
- Miguel Piñero – Declaration 1968, from Outlaw
- We also mentioned poems from Tish Jones, Ed Bok Lee, Muna Abdulahi and others; find those here. In my most recent class, we also do deep dives into Carlos Andrés Gómez’s 12 Reasons to Abolish C.B.P & I.C.E and Joaquín Zihuatanejo’s Poetry Prompts for Detained Children (among other poems already mentioned).
The very cool “color prompts” resource that Isha shared.
Isha shouted out the red cards w/ “know-your-rights” info.
Also mentioned in the conversation: a bunch of Twin Cities institutions worth supporting: Moon Palace Books, Project for Pride in Living, Community Aid Network MN, The Smitten Kitten, Defend612, MIRAC (even more here).
Poetry-specific local events we mentioned: Be Heard, the ReVerb open mic, Buckslam, and Better Things.
- ALSO: there’s a small window between when I post this and when this workshop happens, but if you happen to be reading this in that window, I am facilitating another “Salt, Warmth, and Force: Poetry Against ICE” workshop on Wednesday, February 18! Proceeds from that will also go to the CTUL fund.