Poetic Voices of the Muslim World

FAIN: MW-50010-12

City Lore: NY Center for Urban Folk Culture (New York, NY 10003-9345)
Steve Zeitlin (Project Director: August 2011 to June 2016)

Funding details:
Original grant (2012) $500,000.00
Supplement (2014) $200,000.00

City Lore, in collaboration with Poets House, respectfully requests $500,000 from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) to develop and implement over two years (January 2012 - December 2013) a national program called Poetic Voices of the Muslim World, which will explore the ways in which the performance, study and interpretation of contemporary oral and literary Muslim poetry traditions can increase understanding of Muslim cultures. This project consists of three components: 1) a series of public programs; 2) a website; and 3) an 18 panel traveling exhibition that will introduce the cultures of the Islamic world, via its poetries, to new audiences in six cities across the United States. To reach these new audiences, Poetic Voices of the Muslim World will build on Poets House's longstanding relationship with public libraries throughout the nation, as well as the organization's affiliation with the American Library Association (ALA).