Former Oregon Poet Laureate's peace poem translated into 50 languages

Think Out Loud

Former Oregon Poet Laureate Kim Stafford wrote a “A Proclamation for Peace” poem several years ago. But today it has a new resonance. It’s been published in a new book, along with translations into more than 50 languages and notes from the dozens of translators who were involved. The poem appears in Arabic and Hebrew, Russian and Ukrainian, Tibetan and Mandarin, Tamil, Vietnamese, Polish, Yoruba, Yucatec Maya, and a host of other languages. It also includes QR codes that link to recordings of people reading the poem.

Stafford will convene a series of readings at local bookstores, starting with Annie Blooms Books in Portland in October. Stafford and his collaborator, fellow poet, editor and translator, Allison deFreese join us to talk about the project.