Saeed Jones (Prelude to Bruise) and Maggie Smith (Keep Moving) have curated a moving and important collection of short writings in The People's Project: Poems, Essays, and Art for Looking Forward. The anthology is grounded in the harsh realities of U.S. politics in 2025 while gently encouraging of a more expansive view of place and time. "Our survival and future... depend on our ability to connect with and protect each other far and wide, to share what we've learned from our varied and shared histories in order to enrich each other's wisdom, confidence and imagination."
This carefully crafted compilation from 27 contemporary writers is a beautiful tribute to their "wisdom, confidence, and imagination." Ashley C. Ford reminds readers to ask themselves the hard questions, while Mira Jacob grounds them in the present. Smith shares her intentions for moving through the world differently in "My Own Project 2025," while Eula Bliss reflects in "An Education" on resistance as "a decision... to be made over and over and again." Jones and Smith call The People's Project "community as a book... both an offering and a prayer," and the variety within its pages honors that framing. With writings that encompass the deeply personal and the international, every piece in The People's Project is a reminder of what is, and an invitation to reimagine what could be. It's a timely and emotionally resonant reflection on what this moment--and all the moments yet to come--ask of readers as they fight to recognize and reaffirm a vision of a shared, collective humanity. --Kerry McHugh, freelance writer