North America
Memory as Guide: Iam.lk and personal narratives of Sri Lanka
Ahalya Satkunaratnam reflects on how the stories of elders in the website, Iam.lk assist in complicating identity in Sri Lanka and how this site provides a discussion of national history and personal belonging that circumvents hostility that often accompanies web-based discussions of identity, the nation and the war.
New Orleans thunderstorm, after the Boston marathon
birds echo and a tentative sun
retreats to darkness, knowing
far away news about to flood
our transplant hearts.
days, it’s been rising
pushing
up
seeking the jagged cracks in
facades of cheery every-day.
SWAT teams lockdown
again,
“please…not…a muslim…brown…”
one brown man after another flashed across the screen
we prayed
fearing marines neighborhood shellings on the screen
fearing our brothers pushed in front of a New York subway
fearing fear bursting into lives
United States of Dissent: Converging Political Imaginaries of the Ghadarites and Black Panthers
Simmy Makhijani explores the personal and political intersections between the Ghadaries and the Black Panthers in the Bay Area. She invites us to ask how we might carve out political space as South Asians in relation to our shared and divergent radical pasts, through the lens of a 'polycultural' tradition.
Lean Left: Young Radical Voices
Flash back to the first time you met another Desi lefty. Can you remember the quickening of your heart? Your excitement at finding someone who cared about the same issues and communities? For most of us, the moment we realized we weren’t alone in the world, struggling against the conservative expectations of our parents, aunties and uncles - when we realized that we had sisters and brothers in the cause who understand where we come from and where we wanted this world to go - was life-changing.
Rebellion and the Ghadar Centennial
How do we practice and understand revolution? How has the spirit of Ghadar shaped the communities we form in the present, and how have we transformed radical action in the 21st century?
The Art of Politics
In honor of our 20th anniversary, we wanted to share our perspectives on crafting this vibrant issue, which features poetry by Bushra Rehman, Purvi Shah, YaliniDream and Ather Zia, along with a photo essay by Sabelo Narasimhan. Together, these pieces highlight the diversity of voices in the diaspora, ranging from Narasimhan’s visual documentation of protests against New York City’s Stop-and-Frisk policy to Rehman’s tongue-in-cheek take on break-ups.
To celebrate our 20th year, SAMAR collaborates with the SAADA, the South Asian American Digital Archives! Check out an issue from 2002!
In honor of SAMAR's 20th year, we bring you an issue from the past via SAADA, the South Asian American Digital Archives!
Letters to a Desi Radical (in the Making): Review of Uncle Swami: South Asians in America Today by Vijay Prashad
Junaid Rana gives his take on Vijay Prashad's latest text, Uncle Swami
Destination Culture
A critical look at South Asian arts and activism festivals in North America
