Urgent Call For Submissions: Please Read!

I am passing along a call for a special supplemental section of Babel Fruit. Please read, write, and send it us asap.

-- Cati 

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Spell Out Whatever You Want! Now!  

On January 22, 2008, the Burmese poet Saw Wei was arrested for publishing an eight-line poem entitled “February Fourteenth” in the weekly publication Love Journal.

The acrostic poem spells out “General Than Shwe is crazy with power”.

Saw Wei, a popular poet and performance artist, has headed up the poetry recital group, White Rainbow, fundraisers for AIDS orphans. He participated in the 1988 uprising, and has been an active proponent of human rights. Saw Wei is now in prison, held incommunicado. No information regarding charges has been released to the public.

Babel Fruit would like to call for contributions for a special supplemental: a selection of acrostic poems to be published on February 14th. The poems may spell out any word you feel is appropriate.

We encourage readers and contributors to print out Babel Fruit's PDF collection (including Saw Wei’s poem) and mail it to their diplomatic representative in Myanmar.

Let’s make this happen! There are only five days left until the deadline, but we can do it. Don’t revise and revise this time. Rage!

I am hoping there will be so many poems I will be totally overwhelmed and will need many, many people to help compile the poems.

Send poems to editors@babelfruit.org and put “Wei” in the subject line.

We also encourage other direct initiatives to help Saw Wei. Send individual or group responses to your diplomatic representatives to draw attention to this cause.