Omar Sakr

Omar Sakr
BornWestern Sydney, Australia
OccupationPoet and novelist
Website
www.omarsakr.com

Omar Sakr is a contemporary Arab Australian poet, novelist and essayist.

Career

Sakr has been a published poet since 2014, with over 80 poems appearing in literary journals including Meanjin,[1] Overland [2] and other publications.[3][4] His first book of poetry These Wild Houses was published in 2017 by Cordite Books.[5]

In 2020, he was the first Arab-Australian Muslim to be shortlisted for and then win the prestigious Prime Minister's Literary Award for poetry for his book The Lost Arabs.[6][7] The judging panel described The Lost Arabs as a collection of “vital, energy-driven poems” that “speak with a clear and fearless voice, a voice that is often passionate and sometimes angry, but always lucid and warmly human."[8]

His first novel, Son of Sin, was published by Affirm Press in 2022. Rafqa Touma in The Guardian described in as “laced with charm, candor and a vital sense of warmth”.[9] Sakr's work has been translated into Arabic and Spanish[10] and he was the poetry editor of The Lifted Brow from 2017 to 2020.[11] In 2022, Sakr was named by The Australian as one of the top 100 cultural leaders in the arts.[12] His latest poetry collection, Non-Essential Work, was published by University of Queensland Press in 2023.[13]

On 10 December 2024, Sakr was announced as the Australian Greens candidate for the Division of Blaxland at the 2025 Australian federal election.[14]

State Library Victoria controversy

Main article: State Library Victoria Teen Writing Bootcamp controversy

In 2024, Sakr was scheduled to appear at the State Library Victoria's Teen Writing Bootcamp series for young people alongside Alison Evans, Amie Kaufman, Ariel Slamet Ries, Morgan Rose and Jinghua Qian. On 28 February, two days before Sakr's scheduled appearance on 1 March, the entire program was cancelled by the library who cited that a "child and cultural safety" review was necessary. Public speculation followed that public support of Palestine by Sakr and three other authors was the actual reason for the cancellation,[15][16] claims that were supported by numerous Library staff.[17] Internal emails relating to the incident, obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, later confirmed that the Library had indeed scrutinised the political and religious views of the authors on various topics and especially Palestine when making the decision to cancel the workshops. One employee had raised concerns that Sakr, as a Muslim, should not be paired with a Jewish writer.[18]

Personal life

Sakr was born to immigrant Turkish-Lebanese parents in Western Sydney, where he still lives.[19] He attended Liverpool Boys High, received his BA in communication from the University of Technology, Sydney in 2010 and his Master in Creative Writing from the University of Sydney in 2013. Sakr is bisexual.[20]

In 2019, Sakr was part of the Big Anxiety festival, where he spoke of how he had experienced anxiety and depression as he navigated his sexuality in a religious household, and how writing poetry had allowed him to channel his feelings and "take the pain in my life and transform it into something beautiful."[21]

Awards

[23]

Books

  • Son of Sin (Affirm Press, 2022)
  • The Lost Arabs (University of Queensland Press, 2019)
  • These Wild Houses (Cordite Books, 2017)
  • Non-Essential Work (University of Queensland Press, 2023)

Short stories

  • “White Flu” in After Australia (Affirm Press, 2020)
  • “An Arab Werewolf” in Liverpool in Kindred: 12 Queer YA Stories (Walker, 2019)

References

  1. ^ "Eye Bones In You Throat by Omar Sakr". Meanjin. Archived from the original on 25 June 2022. Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  2. ^ "Three Poems by Omar Sakr". Overland. Archived from the original on 18 May 2022. Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  3. ^ "Hop This Scotch by Omar Sakr". Peril Magazine. Archived from the original on 18 August 2022. Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  4. ^ "Diary of A Non-Essential Worker by Omar Sakr". The Saturday Paper. Archived from the original on 26 May 2022. Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  5. ^ "These Wild Houses by Omar Sakr". Cordite Books. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  6. ^ "2020 winners announced today #PMLitAwards". Australian Government. Archived from the original on 19 May 2022. Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  7. ^ "Prime Minister's Literary Awards: The Yield and The Lost Arabs throw fragile lines across cultural and linguistic divides". The Conversation. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
  8. ^ "Prime Minister's Literary awards: Tara June Winch wins in record-breaking year for Indigenous work". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 5 December 2022. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
  9. ^ "Son of Sin by Omar Sakr review – a queer Muslim boy comes of age in poetic, vivid debut". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  10. ^ "Shelf Reflection: Omar Sakr". Kill Your Darlings. Archived from the original on 2 March 2022. Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  11. ^ "For Omar Sakr, "Poetry Is Air"". Chicago Review of Books. Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  12. ^ "The 100 List Arts and Culture 2022". The Australian. Archived from the original on 13 June 2022. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
  13. ^ "UQP acquires new collection from prize-winning poet Omar Sakr". UQP. Archived from the original on 18 October 2022. Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  14. ^ Wind, Emily (2024-12-10). "Australia news live: Albanese visits Melbourne synagogue after Friday attack; RBA holds cash rate at 4.35%". the Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-12-10.
  15. ^ Burke, Kelly (6 March 2024). "Writers puzzled after State Library Victoria cancels workshops for teens citing 'child and cultural safety'". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  16. ^ O'Brien, Kerrie (7 March 2024). "State Library Victoria cancels workshops hosted by pro-Palestine writers". The Age. Archived from the original on 15 March 2024. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  17. ^ Beazley, Jordyn (14 March 2024). "State Library Victoria staff accuse management of 'censorship and discrimination' over pro-Palestine authors controversy". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  18. ^ O'Brien, Kerrie (16 July 2024). "State Library probed writers' political, religious views before cancellations". The Age. Archived from the original on 16 July 2024. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
  19. ^ "The suburbs I still know". SMH. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
  20. ^ "George Haddad and Omar Sakr centre bisexual Arab Australian protagonists in their debut novels". ABC. Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  21. ^ "Muslim poet tackles taboo subjects at Big Anxiety festival". SBS. Archived from the original on 29 August 2024. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
  22. ^ "NSW Premier's Literary Awards 2024 shortlists announced". Books+Publishing. 2024-05-06. Retrieved 2024-05-10.
  23. ^ "ALS Gold Medal 2024 shortlist announced". Books+Publishing. 2024-06-06. Retrieved 2024-06-06.
  24. ^ "Indie Book Awards 2023 shortlist announced". Books+Publishing. 18 January 2023. Archived from the original on 2023-01-18. Retrieved 2023-01-18.

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