Potency of Poetry as Ancestral Medicine
“Potency of Poetry as Ancestral Medicine” project of poems by Blue Au. The project is an intuitive, non-linear and creative practice in breaking the spells of colonial generational traumas, in order to reconnect to the inherent indigenous knowledge, that all is alive within and around us, for our healing and liberation. These poems are a rewiring of the traumatic memories, toward more medicinal healing stories.
About the Artist
Blu Lopez Au (they/them/theirs) is a chicanx indigiqueer, non-binary femme, who was born in Tucson, Arizona on the original homelands of the Tohono O’odham people, beside saguaro blossoms and summer monsoons that smelled of creosote. They were raised by their gritty survivalist parents who crossed oceans and moved mountains, through their fierce fire to always find a way. Blu is a first-generation college graduate and received their BA in Sociology-Public Health from the University of Arizona. Their own fierce fire was ignited through the healing power of community and the collective voices of intersectional hood feminists organizing around gender-based violence and community accountability. Blu has since been inspired to pursue a path of healing justice work within their own Queer Trans Black Indigenous People of Color (QTBIPOC) community. Blu is a passionate poet, plant-lover, and healing arts practitioner. They’re currently working on a Master’s Degree in Mexican American Studies and are interested in deepening their understanding of Indigenous Systems of Healing. Blu’s current research explores the creative, non-linear, and liminal ways ancestral knowledge is acknowledged and accessed as a resource to heal colonial wounds and historical trauma.