Celes Tisdale on Remembering the Attica Prison Uprising Through Poetry

PEN America Works of Justice

In the latest episode of PEN America’s Works of Justice podcast, Malcolm Tariq, senior manager of editorial projects for PEN America’s Prison and Justice Writing, speaks with Celes Tisdale about the recent reissue of his anthology, When the Smoke Cleared: Attica Prison Poems and Journal (Duke University Press, 2022), originally published as Betcha' Ain't: Attica Poems (Broadside Press, 1974). Tisdale talks about his approach to teaching poetry, the process of editing the volume, and the importance of remembering the 1971 uprising through poems. He 1also shares gems of his life as a stage actor and television host, including a heartwarming story on meeting Muhammad Ali.