Fatima-Ayan Malika Hirsi, a Dallas-raised poet, has recently unveiled her debut full-length poetry collection titled “Dream for Earth,” published by the independent publisher Deep Vellum.
Hirsi’s latest work encompasses five years’ worth of poetry written across Dallas, Oregon, and Canada, delving into significant themes such as motherhood, climate grief, and resilience.
Hirsi is not new to the world of poetry; she has previously authored the chapbooks “Moon Woman” and “Everything Good is Dying,” with her work featured in journals like Obsidian: Literature & Arts in the African Diaspora.
With a deep-rooted passion for storytelling, Hirsi reflects on her journey: “I’ve just always loved telling stories. Right now that manifests as poetry. And most of my life, it’s manifested as poetry.”
In an exclusive interview, Hirsi shared insights into her creative process, personal experiences as a Black mother, her community work, and the influence of the current political climate on her writing.
When asked about her approach to writing poetry, Hirsi elaborated on her creative process. “I usually sit down to a page with one of two entry points. So one is I have a line or an idea in my head, and I don’t exactly know where it will go. It’s like I set out on a road, and I could end up in who knows where. I am surprised at the end.”
She described her other entry point as starting from a blank page, allowing spontaneity to guide her.
Hirsi emphasized that her journey as a Black woman and her experiences growing up in the South significantly shape her role as a mother. She believes in the duty of parents to impart knowledge about the realities of the world to their children.
One poignant personal experience Hirsi recalled was during her elementary school years in Florida and Texas, where she was required to recite the Pledge of Allegiance daily. She sensed early on that the pledge did not resonate with her identity.
Reflecting on her childhood, she stated, “So one day, I just refused to stand up, and the teacher called me to the front of the classroom and asked me some questions and was not happy.”
Her mother intervened, leading to a compromise where Hirsi could stand but not place her hand over her heart or recite the words. This advocacy greatly influences her parenting philosophy today.
Growing up in Dallas, Hirsi described a community that deeply valued art and collective kinship. She highlighted her pride in community projects like Decolonize Dallas and Southern Sector Rising, an organization addressing environmental racism in South Dallas.
Hirsi recounted her childhood experience in Joppa, an area plagued by pollution from a nearby cement plant. “My family lived in Joppa. Joppa is directly beside a cement plant that is still running. And my mom stopped gardening because her garden was just covered in ash. She couldn’t eat the vegetables she was growing.”
She expressed that such experiences compel individuals to confront uncomfortable truths.
When discussing the political themes in her collection, Hirsi noted a growing concern over rising authoritarianism and fascism both in the U.S. and globally.
“As someone who cares about collective kinship, I can’t help but to be influenced by all the things that I see,” she stated. “I want to dream of different futures for us despite the fact that this stuff is going on.”
Hirsi also highlighted her role in arts organizing, establishing Dark Moon Poetry and Arts in Dallas. This initiative aimed to create a space specifically for uplifting feminine and nonbinary voices of color.
She recalled her motivation, saying, “I wanted to make a space where that wasn’t the case,” noting the need for diversity in the poetry scene.
In terms of her favorite poems from “Dream for Earth,” Hirsi particularly connected with “Solidarity.”
The poem resonates with themes of collective kinship and is reflective of current social struggles. “I certainly think of the scenes I keep seeing on my social media of people rising up against the genocide in cities across the world and just the massive swarms of people and how that’s reflective of collective kinship and us being strong together despite the storms of the politicians who just don’t to hear us.”
Ultimately, Hirsi hopes her readers will be inspired to not only feel but also take action. “So the point is not just to be sad but to do something about it in any way that you can,” she expressed.
“You can be a healer, a disruptor, a storyteller. There’s so many ways and there’s so many ways that are interlinked, right? A poem can be healing and it can be disruptive and it could inspire new visions. And so I just really hope that people find their place in this moment to do something for others.”
The collaboration between Arts Access and The Dallas Morning News, along with KERA, has further elevated the significance of Hirsi’s journey as an artist and the invaluable perspective she brings to contemporary poetry.
image source from：keranews
