If They Should Come for Us

“From ‘Oil’” by Fatimah Asghar (2017)

This poem engages a child speaker who considers the potential for violence in language. As well, the poem contains ruminations on ideas of identity and origin.

“Ghareeb” by Fatimah Asghar (2018)

“Ghareeb” is a modern interpretation of the ghazal, a poetic form of Arabic and medieval Persian origin. The ghazal is unique for its use of couplets and rhyme.

"Glory Be to the Gang Gang Gang” by Momtaza Mehri (2019)

This poem celebrates community among the displaced and relocated, echoing some of Asghar’s themes of location, movement, and how individuals exist in a diversity of experiences.

“Maps” by Yesenia Montilla (2017)

In this poem, the poet considers the idea of maps as well as the bodies they can both represent and dismiss. This examination of country and identity illuminates what it means to belong and to be lost.

If They Come for Us: Poems by Fatimah Asghar (2018)

This full-length collection of poems by Fatimah Asghar was her debut work, bringing her Pakistani Muslim heritage to the forefront of the literary world upon its publication in 2018.

The Breakbeat Poets Vol. 3: Halal If You Hear Me by Fatimah Asghar and Safia Elhilo (2019)