Danez Smith’s latest poetry collection, Bluff, is a bold and unflinching work that captures the defiance and resilience of the times. Known for their radical and evocative style, Smith delivers a series of poems that confront the harsh realities of survival, rage, and longing in the modern world.
The collection serves as a homecoming for Smith, centering around Minneapolis, their hometown, in the aftermath of the protests that erupted following the murder of George Floyd. Through their powerful verse, Smith examines the brutal underpinnings of American society, drawing connections between the violence inflicted on Black communities, the environmental crisis, and the imperialistic tendencies of the U.S. government.
Smith’s work also explores their own role as a poet within this context, grappling with the responsibilities and challenges that come with speaking out against the establishment. In the poem “less hope,” Smith reflects on the unsettling reception of their work: “they clapped at my eulogies. they said, encore, encore. / we wanted to stop being killed & they thanked me for beauty / &, pitifully, i loved them.” This introspection highlights the uneasy relationship between art and activism, as Smith questions the complicity that capitalism demands.
Throughout Bluff, Smith uses innovative forms to map the boundaries of power and resistance. In the poem “rondo,” they address the historical trauma of Minneapolis’s Rondo neighborhood, where the construction of an interstate highway split the Black community in two. The physical and emotional scars of this division are rendered on the page, symbolized by a black road that cleaves the text itself.
Smith’s poetry also delves into the complexities of utopia and sanctuary, particularly as they relate to their identity as a queer, non-binary person. In the poem “soon,” they ask: “what is my eden? is it mine? is our eden the same as mine?” Through their words, Smith imagines a heaven that emerges from the hell of oppression, offering visions of a future where Black people can exist beyond the reach of state violence.
Bluff is more than just a collection of poems; it is a manifesto for resistance and a call for a brighter, more just world. As Smith poignantly expresses, they envision a future where “somewhere my children can write poems about being. / without protest, their songs full of stars.”