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A review by softgalaxy
Surge by Jay Bernard
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
An amazing poetry collection. I don’t know much about Black history in the UK, so this was my first time hearing about the New Cross Fire of 1981. The way that Bernard drew connecting lines between what happened in 1981 and the Grenfell Tower Fire of 2017. Not much has changed in the treatment of Black lives in the UK. The media, the politicians, the police don’t care and will never care.
It also talks about Black queerness briefly, and how Black British queerness is another thing that isn’t really well documented. I guess it’s saying that Black pain is more documented than Black joy, which is very true when we look at the type of movies that win awards over the years.
Overall, it’s a collection about memory, community, justice, and how interwoven these concepts are. Memory is justice. Justice is community. Community is memory.
It also talks about Black queerness briefly, and how Black British queerness is another thing that isn’t really well documented. I guess it’s saying that Black pain is more documented than Black joy, which is very true when we look at the type of movies that win awards over the years.
Overall, it’s a collection about memory, community, justice, and how interwoven these concepts are. Memory is justice. Justice is community. Community is memory.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racism, Violence, and Fire/Fire injury