Amiri Baraka should be removed as New Jersey Poet Laureate
...nd popularize poetry. By writing this poem, he is not upholding his duties. If Baraka wrote this poem long before he was appointed to his position, did the panel not read it before appointing him? Did they read the poem not paying attention to what it said and brushing it aside? The New Jersey Council for the Humanities should have researched Amiri Baraka more before appointing him to the position. The former Poet Laureate Gerald Stern, shared his opinions. Stern stated when interviewed by the International Press Association, “We didn’t ask to see his credentials. If I would have known that he had written ‘Somebody Blew Up America’… I would have said f—k him!” Therefore, it was the New Jersey Council for the Humanities’ fault for not researching him enough (IPA). If the council that appoints the Poet Laureate had actually asked for references and looked at a portfolio of his recent works, they would have known that he is not what a Poet Laureate should be. They would have seen that “racism and abuse of power have been Baraka's main themes through his career in literary activism spanning 40 years” (IPA). In his controversial poem “Somebody Blew Up America,” he argues that the intelligence agencies of the world, including those in the United States, knew that the World Trade Center would be attacked and let it happen (IPA). Baraka wrote this poem to cause an up rise in people, controversy, and to show that he could write something that is considered radical. As Poet Laureate he should not be looking at that angle when writing poetry to be read at public affairs. When Baraka read his poem to the public for the first time, he did not get the reaction that he wanted. Baraka was “booed” off the stage and had to revise his poem the second time he read it. After reading through his poem many times, I realized that there is no point in the entire poem. The poem never stayed on one topic and Baraka was complaining about how blacks were treated in history. Occasionally, he throws in information about other groups in history. Amiri Baraka’s poem was supposedly based on the events of September 11. One would think the name “Somebody Blew Up America,” explains what the poem is about; however, why does Baraka only mention September 11 three times in the entire six page poem? In his poem he complains about the “blacks” nine times and mentions the “N” word three times. Aside from the language issues, Baraka mentions a few things about the Israeli’s in his poem. Some readers have thought that just because Baraka mentions Israel in the poem, they assume he is discussing the Jews. In a quote taken from Baraka himself he stated “First of all, Israel and Judaism are not the same, and to hide behind Judaism every time someone criticizes Israel is a charade.” Baraka also claims that “Anything that I said in that poem can be referenced” (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). That is not entirely true. The Israeli’s are on our side, and Baraka is trying to put them into this mess. He is trying to blame and state that the Israeli’s knew about the attack before it happened. In his poem he affirmed that 4,000 Jews stayed home from work on September 11. “Baraka recycled the widely discredited Internet rumor that the Israeli government had warned its nationals—or, in other versions, Jews in general—to stay home from their jobs at the World Trade Center on September 11th. Most versions of the rumor do not suggest that Prime Minister Sharon had plans to be at the World Trade Center that day” (Washington Post). So why would Baraka use that kind of information in his poem if he did not even get his information from a credited source? Amiri Baraka may say that he did, but research indicates that there is no evidence of this information being true. Baraka also writes in his poem “Who know why Five Israelis was filming the explosion and cracking they sides at the notion.” Where did he come up with this fact? Could he be talking about the two French brothers that filmed and recorded a documentary on September 11? Maybe there were five Israelis filming the attack, but there were also plenty of other people of different nationalities. Some Jewish groups have characterized the poem as anti-Semitic. Another quote from the Washington Post tries to make sense of what Baraka has written. “The language used in Mr. Baraka's recent poem could be interpreted as stating that Israelis were forewarned of the September 11th terrorist attacks. Mr. Baraka should clarify the intent of his language, apologize for any potential misinterpretation of his language, and resign,” Free speech has a fine line. As a public figure and being constantly in the public eye, one should measure his or her words carefully. ...