Poetry: “in my english poems” by Josiane Kouagheu

Josiane Kouagheu is the undisputed master of implication. In this brief poem, she reveals a powerhouse indictment and accuses the centuries of colonialism which have led to the dominance of English as a global language—and the Western world at large, which erases and devalues all other cultures. The power of the written word is well-known, but the power of what’s between the lines isn’t always so obvious. This is the place where Kouagheu has found her voice, and we are missing out if we don’t all start listening.