The Poetry of Resistance: Faiz, Neruda, Darwish, and Qabbani

Description

This powerful session explores poetry as an act of resistance and a voice for the voiceless. At its heart are four towering literary figures: Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Pablo Neruda, Mahmoud Darwish, and Nizar Qabbani, whose words transcended borders and became rallying cries for justice, dignity, and freedom. 

Faiz and Neruda were known friends and fellow travellers in the international struggle for peace and justice. Darwish and Faiz were also dear friends and shared a poetic kinship. Qabbani paralleled Faiz in his fusion of love and politics, turning verse into a form of protest. 

Despite writing in different languages of Urdu, Spanish, and Arabic, these poets are bound by a common ethos: that poetry can confront power, nurture memory, and awaken hope. Their legacies speak across borders and generations, inviting us to consider how language and resistance remain intertwined. 

Join us for a rich conversation on poetry’s enduring power to inspire change. 

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