Billy-Ray Belcourt (he/him) is a writer and academic from the Driftpile Cree Nation. The above poem was snatched from the essential Survivance zine created by Elizabeth LaPensée, Ph.D., and R.I.S.E. (Radical Indigenous Survivance and Empowerment).
The work available in this series is vibrant, illuminating and broadly necessary. Please support their projects.
One bit of vocab to spotlight here: KOOKUM, I believe, is a Cree word for grandmother.
“A change in the concept of sexual identity is essential if we are not going to see the old political order reassert itself in every new revolution. … The charisma of Man seems to come purely from his power over [women] and his control over the world by force, not from anything fertile or life-giving in him.” Adrienne Rich, from “When We Dead Awaken”, 1971
grass grows gross in being whether its exploitative media of dogs has found itself at things from other its cultural exploitative of the centre of culture it homages that being appropriation but support segregation their careers by male drag begins queens who have been accused of a new vanguard broken of dogs has found itself at things silence from other cultural appropriation their careers silent debating up as women new west and race (especially white) medium means things from other its exploitative of the world culture allowed to adopt the centre of culture appropriation it homages things from the other culture began in segregation and race (especially white) mean broken that being but support segregation broken by male drag artists silencing and race (especially white) means the ridiculous notion mediate that being but support segregation culture that being of a controversy in punching up female appropriation the new vanguard of a different week begins with some viewers male drag artists begin and hinder progress in recentre or racism broken new vanguard of the centre silence race (especially white) means the centres medium or race (especially white) means the centre of dog culture has found itself at the world appropriation allowed to do is to do to adopt the word appropriation allowed to adopt the centre of culture controversy begins in that being their careers male drag artists break progress in their careers by male drag artists silence and hinder progressing up the female media new west and hinder progressing but culture what of culture support segregation by male drag culture and hinder progress in recent weeks appropriate with some viewers but male begins drag queens who have bees broken upon notion whose being but supports segregation silence and racism the centre of a new vanguard media of a different weakness with some viewers medium dress careers by dressing whether its exploitative cultural controversy recentred as dontroversy appropriation in recentring of a new west begins isle of controversy recentre cultural appropriation broken careers male drag artists daze wander gander gaze silent progressing whether culture homages silence their careers debate whether its exploitative of medium a different week with some viewers by male drag artists cultured and georgie bee are notions that the worlds appropriation allows adoption things begin from other exploitations broken of a different week with some broken viewers by male drag artists hinder progressive silence recentre racism their careers by artists media hinder progress recentre racism queens cultural who are bees of notion appropriation the cultural appropriation begins the mediums cultural appropriation begins with broken silence
“Bless the fever in that night / in the sixth month of my life. / Bless the fever, for it gave me sight; / it swole my brain to fit God’s gift.” Tyehimba Jess
he she
his saints
maketh are
the grave that maketh are their themself
you he she
his letter saints her letter saints
and to them
they themself
they make him self your saints
her saints that marketh their grave
theirs
the lord that killeth and maketh the lord killeth
and maketh again
the lord killeth
and they to me the grave and bolt
him he she ours his saints
maketh and marketh
maketh and make the
she who ours his
saints and to themself you she he it they
the lord killeth up on the lord killeth
maketh up she
he they their we us our saints
and among them
“If I were in authority, I would forbid advertising.” Le Corbusier
to be loved eyes closed of pain
it is just like you not like you nothing flat
traced with a number two pencil nothing vested
in hydrangeas something more like cutting
something black ravage to be
loved afraid of course cutting
a slow-covered kitchen knife something more
we will be loved afraid of pain
its dimensions feed from perspective
to follow up thick unguent
carving
you don't like specifics
we will make more we're flattered
thick unguent carving
that you don't like in fact we will make more
we will thick unguent
carving into mountains just like you
that you don't like
nothing flattered kitchen knife something
vested in hydrangeas something something
that you don't like specifically that we loved
once afraid of pain covered
in kitchen knife something
what you don't like nothing black ravage
wielding to be loved afraid of pain it is ok
that you don't like you
nothing cutting velvet safe
“Portrait of Man Ray/Pablo Picasso/India Ink/Paper” 2016
penal advent destroys risk
aversion causing the arterization
of small vessels
insitu it’s used to apply
canada cauterize or bacterize
cautery painful duratic acid
cantharidinis from severy seizes wounds
most physicians coagulate around severe
practition like the cost to remove electricity
from the body a metal anesthetic
presses knife a few powerful moments in a barn
surgeons would commonly call out
καίω environments sintered or employed
for fluency tissues cut from penises
body rhythms such as in leach inter-irritant
as female chemicals burn from a small vessel
and canada controls contemporary currents
of medicine advises the removal of their penises
like a tool it can apply to cautery flowers
advises the lunar medical cauterization of winnipeg
a metal of cauters tissue damage retries history