Indian origin Canadian poet, Rupi Kaur recently made the headlines for putting down an invitation by none other than President Joe Biden himself to come and celebrate Diwali with him in The White House. Rupi, the celebrated author and poet of various acclaimed titles like “home body” and “the sun and her flowers” has always been vocal on social and political issues and this incident doesn’t exactly count as a shocker.
Rupi took to X and wrote how she declines the invitation stating that she will not be attending any event being organised by an institution that “supports the collective punishment of a trapped civilian population—50% of whom are children”. This comes after the US’s constant funding to Israel since it entered the war against Palestine. Kaur stated in her post how the actions of Biden go against the very concept the festival represents and how she has always used this day to reflect on what it means to fight for freedom against oppressors.
Kaur instated the South Asian community in the US to do the same and hold the Biden administration accountable in the wake of Gaza’s civilian death toll, which has now passed 10,000, with 70 percent of the deaths being that of women and children. The Gaza Ministry of Health, in its recent report disclosed that the number of child casualties have now reached 4,104.
Following her lengthy statement on social media, which has garnered over 7.5 million views, netizens seem to be divided over her decision. One user, supporting her statement added that Aljazeera reported phone and internet lines in Gaza going dark which has made them unable to reach their reporters.Kaur’s work is highlighted by her encompassion of love, loss, trauma, healing, femininity, and migration. She also urged her followers to sign petitions, join boycotts and attend protests in support of a ceasefire. Earlier this year, the poet’s X account was suspended in India over the Khalistan issue.
