Related Articles • Poems After the Attack: One Year Later • Submit your own poem to be considered for our collection of peace poems

Join the Discussions • The Debt of Our Art: Poets' Duty “...thinking about the purpose of poetry in time of war and crisis... who is your audience?”    --Poetry Guide   • Two Lines for Peace “Here is an idea: Write a two-line poem that will foster peace in the world.”   --Pixordia

Elsewhere on the Web • Poetsagainstthewar.org (US) • Poets Against the War (UK) • Poets4Peace.com at the United Poets Coalition • Australian Poets for Peace Project • “Not In Our Name, a statement of conscience against war and repression” • “After the Fall,” Artists for Peace, Justice and Civil Liberties • “Convergence,” Canadian poems for peace

Which is louder, the earsplitting drums of war or the consciousness surprise poem? The absurdity of a war against Iraq as North Korea flaunts atomic regulations and is dealt with diplomatically, of postponing the war due to the oil strike in Venezuela -- if we can connect the dots through the daily papers, how does Washington continue to pull wool over our sorry state?

What are you doing to stop the war?

Send your peace poem to us, as Anne MacNaughton did. Live like her! in her poetry outpost Taos Circus. Organize protest readings. At the Bowery Poetry Club, we hand out ye olde Peace buttons -- only now we wear ’em upside down, as Patti Smith has suggested -- this ain’t the 60s any more! Send us your poems. Send us your antiwar reading dates and info. Send us your ideas for the Power of Poetry, the Power of Peace.

Poets, to the barricades of words!

Bob Holman & Margy Snyder

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early on january one

I shake the hand
of the secretary of defense
near edge of pueblo racetrack
happy new year I say
tiny hesitation at first, a charming televised face
then open hand expensive glove
happy new year he says and smiles
the snowy peak above mud walls is suddenly exposed
by new sun
splitting stormclouds

from that spot where turtledance is sung
the death’s head at treeline isn’t visible
above macaw feathers’ red spikes
above the stomp of maskless kachinas
above rattles
spruce
foxtails bounce
feathers of all birds in their hair
above the beautiful men who open throats and sing

may we have peace
happy new year

©2003, Anne MacNaughton

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