Poets and writers
Mohamud Siad Togane (Maxamuud Siyaad Togane)
Mohamud Siad Togane (born 1 July 1947) is a Somali-Canadian poet and peace activist. Educated at Mennonite schools in Somalia and Eastern Mennonite College in the United States, he taught at Lafoole before settling in Canada in 1973. His first collection, The Bottle and the Bushman (1986), deals with racism and alcoholism, and his often satirical poems criticise clan politics and dictatorship.
Mohamud Siad ToganeMaxamuud Siyaad Togane
- Lived
- 1947-07-01 to today
- Known as one of
- Poets and writers
- Era
- Toward independence, 1920 to 1960; The Republic, 1960 to 1991; Rebuilding without a state, 1991 to 2012; Who holds power, 2012 to now
- Sources
- 1 sources
Who is he?
Mohamud Siad Togane is a Somali-Canadian poet and peace activist born on 1 July 1947 (Wikipedia, Mohamud Siad Togane). He went to Mennonite schools in Mahaddei and Jowhar, then studied in the United States, graduating in English literature from Eastern Mennonite College in 1969 (same source). See Middle Shabelle.
He taught at the Lafoole College of Education from 1970 to 1973, then left Somalia under the military government and settled in Canada in 1973 (same source). He became a Canadian citizen in 1978 and earned an MA in creative writing from Concordia University in Montreal in 1982 (same source).
Poetry
His first collection, The Bottle and the Bushman: Poems of the Prodigal Son (1986), deals with racism and alcoholism (Wikipedia). His poems criticise Somali clan thinking, life under dictatorship and female genital mutilation, often with satire and blunt language (same source). Some critics say his confrontational style adds to the conflict he opposes, while others see it as honest about clan influence on himself and others (same source). His poems have appeared on Montreal buses through the Poetry in Motion programme (same source).
Peace work
He co-founded Montreal Somali House and the Somali Peace Coalition, and visited Somalia in 1991 to 1992 as part of reconciliation efforts (Wikipedia).
In short
A Montreal-based poet whose satirical verse takes on clan politics, and a co-founder of Somali peace groups.
Sources
- Wikipedia, Mohamud Siad Togane · en.wikipedia.org
Mohamud Siad ToganeMaxamuud Siyaad Togane
- Lived
- 1947-07-01 to today
- Known as one of
- Poets and writers
- Era
- Toward independence, 1920 to 1960; The Republic, 1960 to 1991; Rebuilding without a state, 1991 to 2012; Who holds power, 2012 to now
- Sources
- 1 sources
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