Saeed Jones

Saeed Jones (born November 26, 1985) is an American poet.

Quotes

 * Something you see in the book is my tendency to self-bully. It started when I was a gay black kid growing up in the suburbs. I wasn’t bullied by individuals; kids weren’t shoving me into lockers or calling me slurs to my face. Shame—electrified by racism and homophobia—was enforced by the broader culture though, and in response, I started bullying myself. I started saying cruel things about myself to myself. While I’ve generally grown out of self-hate, an ease with being tough and candid about myself to myself is an integral aspect of my writing…
 * On confronting self-hatred in his book How to Fight For Our Lives in “Interviews: Saeed Jones” in BookPage (2019 Oct 7)


 * Being gay isn't a choice, just like being black isn't a choice…I don't stop. I do not give up. I do not take America's 'no' to my identity for an answer.
 * On being Black and gay in the United States in “'We're All Struggling': Writer Saeed Jones Reflects On Identity And Acceptance” in NPR (2019 Nov 6)


 * I’m obsessed with manhood as a brutal and artful performance. My mind always finds its way back to the crossroad where sex, race, and power collide. Journeys, transformation, as well as dashed attempts to transform, fascinate me as well.
 * On masculinity as a performance (as quoted in “Saeed Jones” in Poets.org)


 * If you look at the poems in Prelude, you can identify the later material by identifying the poems with more white space and unexpected line breaks. Grief did that to me and my writing. It exploded my expectations and introduced these blank pockets of deep feeling. My prose writing became more fluid and lyrical…
 * On how losing his mother affected his writing in “You and I Have Peril in Common: The Millions Interviews Saeed Jones” in The Millions (2019 Nov 21)