Sumud

by Abeer A Zayyad

76 pages, Paperback

Published August 5, 2025

Reviews

[Bethel Swift · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written from a place of both anger and hurt, Abeer's spoken word style debut poetry collection tells it exactly how it is with no feelings spared which is exactly the level of rage, resistance, and righteous rebuke that we need when lives are being lost at such a catastrophic level. As a whole, people are more comfortable with gentle calls for peace; but in a world where whistle blowers and protestors face consequences and perpetrators do not--the reality is we have no right to police the emotions or expressions of victims of state crimes (whether in the U.S., the Sudan, or Palestine). There are some very minor editing and formatting issues that will bother some sticklers but the message is worth getting past these and I anticipate that the author will only improve as she publishes more. Overall, "Sumud" is a courageous work that carries the beating heart of Gaza into our own. Below are some of my favorite lines:

ON STEADFASTNESS:

"I am rude about my resistance,
I am loud in my call for liberation. . . "

"Can culture be consumed,/and by that I ask,
erased."

"Dust in the air, blood on your hands
reporters reporting the death of their friends. . ."

CALLING OUT INACTION & SILENCE AS COMPLICITY:

"I feel a rage in my body that must be expressed
or else it may poison me."

"We have enough for everyone,
but what good is wealth if it isn't spent well?"

"Your ignorance
is your refuge,
but your refuge
is my prison."

"When you say peace, we know you mean us deceased."