WITNESS

For this issue, we asked contributors to send us work on the theme of WITNESS. In this critical moment of history, art provides a lens through which to process our shared trauma, a tool to acknowledge the pain of the persecuted, and a voice to speak for the silenced. Through art we witness both life’s cruelty and the joys that love, compassion, and empathy can foster.
 
This year has been one of unprecedented turmoil and violence. We have witnessed the rise of antisemitism, transphobia and anti-LGBTQ hate-speech, the continued assault against women’s bodies and their right to choose, the toll of two wars, and relentless police brutality against Black Americans. It has also been one of more personal struggles, intermixed with moments of clarity, levity, and transformation. In this volume, you’ll find works that show why the act of witnessing is so vital in times of such uncertainty and oppression. They meditate on the nature of human suffering, challenge the constraints of action vs. inaction, and offer hope in the form of human spirit, and creation in the face of inconstancy. Most of all, these poems, stories, and artworks consider creativity and compassion as a way to discover necessary truths. We’re proud to present this selection of powerful, potent pieces to commiserate and console, defy and defend, and acknowledge and bear witness. 
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A massive thank you to our incredible contributors for their eye-opening works. This issue owes its strength to you.