We’re honored to share the Rainbow Advocacy Press release of a new poetry collection by Tanzanian poet Omary Baajun, whose work brings a global and deeply grounded perspective to poems of witness and solidarity.
Olives, Watermelon & Kufiyyeh: Poems for Palestine gathers poems shaped by memory, restraint, and quiet endurance. Written from East Africa, the collection reflects how Palestine’s struggle resonates far beyond borders — carried through shared histories of colonialism, displacement, and resistance.
Through spare, image-driven language, ordinary objects — fruit cut open, cloth wrapped and reworn, soil marked by tears — hold the weight of collective memory. The olive tree, the watermelon’s colors, the kufiyyeh’s weave appear as lived textures that carry continuity and belonging.
Watermelons with red pulp, black seeds, and green-white rind
were the colors of the flag, naturally designed.
Men held the slices high,
even as the people were uprooted.
Those who want to stand on the side of what is right
stand with the red, green, black, and white.
What makes this book distinctive is not only its subject, but its vantage point: a Tanzanian poet writing in solidarity with Palestine, reminding us that Palestine is not an isolated story, and that poetry can move across geographies without losing intimacy or care. Here’s a recent interview with Omary Baajun on writer / podcaster Wyatt O’Brian Evans program.
All net proceeds from the book are dedicated to supporting the nonprofit GenDAR Hub, a home for Tanzania LGBTQIA+ advocacy & pride, through grants administered by Rainbow Advocacy.
Here is Omary Baajun’s award-winning series of 3 short films presented in our official WorldPride 2025 Voices of Solidarity program: OUR PRIDE Shorts & Arts Fest.
Thank you for reading, sharing, and holding space for poetry as witness — across borders and generations.
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