Poetry and the spoken word have long been a powerful and popular means of communication in Burma (Myanmar). Poetry captures emotion, aspiration, hope and despair, speaking truth to power in the language of the people. Asia Society is working with the Iowa International Writing Program to organize an event on June 14th that shares the words of Burmese poets and speaks of the unspeakable tragedy of the Burmese poets who have been jailed or killed since the coup. We have asked a number of poets and writers, artists and actors, to say a few words about the plight of the poets in this conflict and the power of poetry, and then to read a poem or two by these Poets of No Name — a moniker chosen to safeguard their identity.

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