PREFACE

STOP RACISM
We wish all our readers, members, writers and poets a happy and peaceful world to live in. THE ANTHOLOGY of Poetry for Unity against Racism is now online. In this special issue we are focusing on RACISM to lend our individual voice for promoting world peace, prosperity and unity of mankind. Let us speak out against racism, violence, blood bath, and for peace prosperity and harmony among different cultures, religions, race, and nationalities to make this world a better place for our future generations.

We think it is also the moral responsibility of poets and writers alike to put their protest, agony, pain and sufferings in words against any racist attitude, inherent belief and direct or indirect activities of discriminations among various races which ends up in violence and hatred of one community by other.  The hatred of one person or community by another or the belief that another person or community is less than human because of skin color, language, customs, place of birth or any other factors that supposedly reveal the basic nature of that person or community is racism, which has influenced wars, and slavery down the history.

Racism disempowers people by devaluing their identity. It is destructive in its inherent nature which destroys community cohesion and creates divisions in society. It is the opposite of the democratic principle of equality and the right of all people to be treated fairly. Racism is a global phenomenon which is influenced by a range of historical, social, political and economic factors. It takes different forms in different contexts. Racist attitudes and beliefs are misconceptions about people based on perceived racial lines and are often founded on the fear of difference, including differences in customs, values, religion, physical appearance and ways of living and viewing the world. Racism is the result of a complex interplay of individual attitudes, social values and institutional practices. It is expressed in the actions of individuals and institutions and is promoted in the ideology of popular culture. It changes its form in response to social change.

Many political and social institutions, organizations or governments also discriminate, either deliberately or indirectly, against certain groups of people to limit their rights. This form of institutional racism reflects the cultural assumptions of the dominant group, so that the practices of that group are seen as the norm to which other cultural practices should conform. This form of racial attitudes and everyday practices regularly and systematically advantages some ethnic and cultural groups and disadvantages and marginalizes others. Institutional racism is often the most difficult to recognize and counter, particularly when it is perpetrated by institutions and governments who do not view themselves as racist.

So this is the moment to shift our focus from mere literary work to use literature to voice our individual protests in a collective manner. No, this is not a political debate for us. We are only concerned with the unity and prosperity of human beings everywhere irrespective of their cast and religion, race and nationality, beliefs and doubts, language and culture. This is the time we thought OUR POETRY ARCHIVE should come out with this special number focusing these issues and addressing the world in poetry for peace against hatred and racist attitude. And we are glad; we have got a huge response from the literary communities all around the world.

We are also happy to announce that our friends and members around the world have contributed their time and provided suggestions, guidance and strong support to make this special edition possible. Our thanks goes to all the members, poets and friends who were directly involved in this collective project. This edition really belongs to them. Without their support and contributions we couldn’t have made it possible.

We invite everyone to visit this edition and share it with your friends and families. We would also like to request our readers to provide us with your valued feedback so that we can carry on with our journey improving OUR POETRY ARCHIVE in a continuous manner.

Thank You All.

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