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Yehya Barakat is an Iraqi queer poet based in Boston MA. Yehya doesn't want you to apologize for getting their name wrong but wants your tongue to learn their song. Having grown in Iraq, Yehya tackles the concept of war and its effects, but still have room in their works for a love poem for you.
Yehya is diagnosed with PTSD and has tackled that subject in their poetry to try and find closure with their past. They have found comfort and release in expressing their dissociation in writing poetry and learn from their past to make a safe environment for those interacting with them.
Yehya is a regular at the Boston Poetry Slam every Wednesday. You can catch them talking about their favorite videogame (At the moment) or their cat, if not busy heart reacting you and your thoughts.
Twitter: @yehyabarakat4
Response to creative prompt: "When I look in the mirror, I see ..."
I suffer from PTSD due to my time in Iraq from 2003 to 2017. This has impacted me in how I can learn to love myself and understand the voice I want to carve art from. This narrative of mine has provided me an outlet into slam poetry in which I have been able to express pain and trauma in an artistic manner. The prompt really hit home for me in the idea that I have trouble understanding still what kind of mistakes I have done and what sorts of experiences helped me become a better person. I aspire to learn from my experiences but some memories you can't resolve and have to be at peace with.
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