Reading and Writing Displacement

According to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the number of people forcibly displaced in 2020 “surpassed 80 million at mid-year.” How can we learn to listen to the voices of those who have had to leave? How can we write the stories of our own departures? How can we address the ways in which we as individuals along with our governments are implicated in these increasing waves of displacement? In this class, we’ll review some of the writers who address displacement in their work and have conversations about strategies and responsibilities, as readers and writers, with regard to this urgent global issue.