It’s no coincidence that Joy Harjo’s collection of poems, An American Sunrise, is one of the most talked about books in Juneau. The public library system featured it in this year’s Big Read program, in part because Harjo is America’s poet laureate, as well as the first Native American to hold that distinction. Her poetry confronts the forced removal of her people from their homelands with a fierce compassion, a perspective the 49 Writers group will explore in a panel discussion this Saturday, March 26th. Local Indigenous writers have been asked to reflect on Harjo’s poetry and their own experiences.
