Never Mind Gaza

A Reading with Gazan Poet Yahya Ashour

Please join us Thursday September 18th as we celebrate the poetry collection Poppies for Palestine and raise essential funds to support the Grassroots Gaza mutual aid initiative. Gazan poet Yahya Ashour will be reading his work and speaking about the ongoing genocide in Gaza.

Poppies for Palestine, through the lens of history and heartache, gathers together poems that transcend borders and time, standing as a testament to the enduring strength of a people displaced, oppressed, yet never silenced. The poets have donated their works to help the displaced find shelter and solace, making this collection not only a creative endeavor but a powerful act of solidarity.

If you can’t make the event please support our fundraising effort by ordering it here.

Yahya Ashour | يحيى عاشور is an exiled Gazan poet and an award-winning author. Born on April 22, 1998, he is currently based in California. He is an honorary fellow in writing at the University of Iowa and the author of the e-book A Gaza of Siege & Genocide, published by Mizna in 2024. Ashour's portfolio also includes three books for children and young adults in Arabic, and contributions to global anthologies and journals, including Michigan Quarterly Review and Arrowsmith Journal. His poetry manuscript-in-progress received an honorable mention from the Emerging Writer Fellowship. He has read poetry at over 50 U.S. organizations and universities, including Harvard and Stanford. His poetry has been translated into more than 10 languages, including Spanish and Bengali. He was the 2025 author-in-residence at UCLA and currently teaches at Pitzer College of the Claremont Colleges.