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Hiba Tahir

@hhtahir

YA author & English Instructor rep'd by Rachel Ekstrom Courage. Poetry MFA alumna. Founder and host of Tightwires, a YouTube channel & podcast. Former Tin House Editorial Intern. www.hibatahir.com

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01.07.2023
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Latest posts by Hiba Tahir @hhtahir

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A coworker took this from her apartment. I haven't seen a crowd this size before. Maybe the first Women's March? But it was much much warmer that day. ICE OUT OF MINNESOTA!

23.01.2026 23:19 πŸ‘ 26039 πŸ” 6659 πŸ’¬ 412 πŸ“Œ 427
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β€œEverybody Showed Up”: Stunning Crowds at Minnesota Day of Strike and Shutdown Against ICE Extreme cold didn't stop the shutdown on Friday as some 100 faith leaders were arrested, residents stayed home from work, and an estimated 50,000 or more marched through downtown Minneapolis.

I'm not one for false optimism. But what I witnessed today in Minneapolis was tremendous, both in scale and exuberance. It was a stunning answer to the federal assault on Minnesota, a show of solidarity that gives us something to hold on to during times that are unforgiving.

24.01.2026 00:42 πŸ‘ 13526 πŸ” 3183 πŸ’¬ 170 πŸ“Œ 119
From Mike Norton on Twitter: Empty car sitting at the intersection of 35th and Pillsbury with its flashers on.
There are these ghost cars all over Minneapolis right now from ICE snatching people out of their vehicle in the middle of the street.

From Mike Norton on Twitter: Empty car sitting at the intersection of 35th and Pillsbury with its flashers on. There are these ghost cars all over Minneapolis right now from ICE snatching people out of their vehicle in the middle of the street.

This is so fucking haunting.

24.01.2026 03:11 πŸ‘ 6551 πŸ” 2387 πŸ’¬ 69 πŸ“Œ 101
NYT bestselling author Ayana Gray talks about I, MEDUSA, mythologies, & moral relativism!
NYT bestselling author Ayana Gray talks about I, MEDUSA, mythologies, & moral relativism! YouTube video by Hiba Tahir

Just before Halloween, I had the great pleasure of speaking to NYT Bestselling author Ayana Gray! I, MEDUSA comes out next Tuesday and I think everyone should read it. youtu.be/75u1E0v3H_A

15.11.2025 23:41 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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The Tightwires Anthology Tightwires is dedicated to featuring writers from diverse backgrounds and communities to share their experiences navigating life & art outside institutional confines.The mission of The Tightwir…

TODAY ONLY! Submit a photo of your β€œI Voted” sticker OR proof of donation to any food pantry in lieu of our $15 submission fee for the inaugural TIGHTWIRES ANTHOLOGY contest! Enter for your chance to win $500 in both fiction and poetry! For more details, visit: hibatahir.com/the-tightwir...

04.11.2025 20:57 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Poet & Director Carey Salerno talks about hunger, honing, & being haunted by Brigit Pegeen Kelly!
Poet & Director Carey Salerno talks about hunger, honing, & being haunted by Brigit Pegeen Kelly! YouTube video by Hiba Tahir

This week on Tightwires, I enjoyed discussing intersections of astrophysics and poetry (among other things) with Carey Salerno, poet & executive director/publisher of Alice James Books! THE HUNGRIEST STARS is out now!
youtu.be/Lihec72jJh4 @alicejamesbooks.bsky.social @careysalerno.bsky.social

29.10.2025 18:15 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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The Tightwires Anthology Tightwires is dedicated to featuring writers from diverse backgrounds and communities to share their experiences navigating life & art outside institutional confines.The mission of The Tightwir…

I’ve been not great at sharing this but that will change this week! Submission deadline THIS FRIDAY for The Tightwires Anthology! $15 submission fee via Venmo; $500 prize in both genres & numerous opportunities for publication! #CallforSubmissions
Find all details here: hibatahir.com/the-tightwir...

20.10.2025 19:15 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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AWS crash causes $2,000 Smart Beds to overheat and get stuck upright - Dexerto The AWS outage caused chaos for owners of Eight Sleep’s Pod3 mattresses as they had no offline mode and were stuck at high temperatures.

"AWS crash causes $2,000 Smart Beds to overheat" is something from a Final Destination pre-production brainstorming session www.dexerto.com/entertainmen...

21.10.2025 20:13 πŸ‘ 906 πŸ” 335 πŸ’¬ 46 πŸ“Œ 306

Twitter used to be the place where reporter talked to experts in the sciences, humanities, social sciences, law, medicine, etc., but the experts all left but reporters did not.

Now reporters only talk to guys who do computers (but haven't coded in at least a decade). It shows.

20.10.2025 17:27 πŸ‘ 1182 πŸ” 224 πŸ’¬ 11 πŸ“Œ 8
The White White East Wing has a big gaping hole.

The White White East Wing has a big gaping hole.

the year is 2030. the white house remains half demolished because president trump refused to pay construction workers and musk gutted government spending. two thieves sneak into the white house using a truck mounted ladder and steal the constitution

21.10.2025 05:50 πŸ‘ 10127 πŸ” 1687 πŸ’¬ 210 πŸ“Œ 126
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The Tightwires Anthology Tightwires is dedicated to featuring writers from diverse backgrounds and communities to share their experiences navigating life & art outside institutional confines.The mission of The Tightwir…

I’ve been not great at sharing this but that will change this week! Submission deadline THIS FRIDAY for The Tightwires Anthology! $15 submission fee via Venmo; $500 prize in both genres & numerous opportunities for publication! #CallforSubmissions
Find all details here: hibatahir.com/the-tightwir...

20.10.2025 19:15 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Things are happening at Portland's ICE facility tonight.

Read more of our protest coverage here: www.oregonlive.com/crime/2025/1...

10.10.2025 03:49 πŸ‘ 19433 πŸ” 6017 πŸ’¬ 584 πŸ“Œ 1594
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10.10.2025 13:07 πŸ‘ 7 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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β€œWhen authoritarians seize power, it is crucial to recognize courageous defenders of freedom who rise and resist.β€πŸ‘‡

10.10.2025 12:20 πŸ‘ 2006 πŸ” 589 πŸ’¬ 60 πŸ“Œ 39

NOT released yet. Shame on those spreading rumors that it has been. This is disrespect of family and his community.

07.10.2025 12:28 πŸ‘ 26 πŸ” 6 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Why should I write better when a machine can do it for me?
Because actually no one can do it for you, because your voice is unique among all the people on earth. Siri never petted a horse's neck. Alexa has never been ghosted by the captain of the football team. But you have lived, your heart is beating, you have suffered, and you have something important to say. It's a human's job, to use words, and whatever job you give to a machine, that part of your brain goes dark. Maybe it's worth it when it comes to remembering phone numbers and directions, but when that part of your brain that uses words goes dark, that's a vast area that's very close to your soul. Don't let some internet platform convince you that what you have to say and create isn't worthwhile. Words are the echo of your soul. Honing that echo matters.

Why should I write better when a machine can do it for me? Because actually no one can do it for you, because your voice is unique among all the people on earth. Siri never petted a horse's neck. Alexa has never been ghosted by the captain of the football team. But you have lived, your heart is beating, you have suffered, and you have something important to say. It's a human's job, to use words, and whatever job you give to a machine, that part of your brain goes dark. Maybe it's worth it when it comes to remembering phone numbers and directions, but when that part of your brain that uses words goes dark, that's a vast area that's very close to your soul. Don't let some internet platform convince you that what you have to say and create isn't worthwhile. Words are the echo of your soul. Honing that echo matters.

this iconic advertising copywriter named Kathy Hepinstall Parks died over the weekend and I wanted to share something from her website I thought Bluesky would like

22.08.2025 14:20 πŸ‘ 19236 πŸ” 8755 πŸ’¬ 36 πŸ“Œ 356

oof

12.09.2025 02:22 πŸ‘ 64 πŸ” 26 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
HOW CAN BLACK PEOPLE WRITE ABOUT FLOWERS AT A TIME LIKE THIS

dear reader, with our heels digging into the good mud at a swamp's edge, you might tell me something

about the dandelion head & how it is not a flower itself but a plant made up of many small flowers at its crown

& lord knows I have been called by what I look like more than I have been called by what I actually am &

I wish to return the favor for the purpose of this exercise. which, too, is an attempt at fashioning 

something pretty out of seeds refusing to make anything worthwhile of their burial. size me up & skip whatever semantics arrive

to the tongue first. say: that boy he look like a hollowed-out grandfather clock. he look like a million-dollar god with a two-cent

heaven. like all it takes is one kiss & before morning, you could scatter his whole mind across a field.

HOW CAN BLACK PEOPLE WRITE ABOUT FLOWERS AT A TIME LIKE THIS dear reader, with our heels digging into the good mud at a swamp's edge, you might tell me something about the dandelion head & how it is not a flower itself but a plant made up of many small flowers at its crown & lord knows I have been called by what I look like more than I have been called by what I actually am & I wish to return the favor for the purpose of this exercise. which, too, is an attempt at fashioning something pretty out of seeds refusing to make anything worthwhile of their burial. size me up & skip whatever semantics arrive to the tongue first. say: that boy he look like a hollowed-out grandfather clock. he look like a million-dollar god with a two-cent heaven. like all it takes is one kiss & before morning, you could scatter his whole mind across a field.

Hanif Abdurraqib πŸ’™

from A FORTUNE FOR YOUR DISASTER (Tin House)

Day 24 - #SealeyChallenge

@tinhouse.bsky.social
@sealeychallenge.bsky.social

25.08.2025 03:50 πŸ‘ 56 πŸ” 13 πŸ’¬ 4 πŸ“Œ 1
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πŸ’ƒMARK YOUR CALENDARS!! πŸ’ƒ

Send us your weirdest, coolest work! Submissions close September 9

20.08.2025 18:53 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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The Tightwires Anthology Tightwires is dedicated to featuring writers from diverse backgrounds and communities to share their experiences navigating life & art outside institutional confines.The mission of The Tightwir…

I’m so excited to announce that after years of planning, The Tightwires Anthology is officially open for submissions! I’m especially thankful for our two incredible judgesβ€” Hanif Abdurraqib will judge poetry, and Hannah Whitten will judge fiction! hibatahir.com/the-tightwir...

22.08.2025 18:06 πŸ‘ 10 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Author, MFA & Ph.D Mariah Rigg talks about colonization, climate change, & the color yellow!
Author, MFA & Ph.D Mariah Rigg talks about colonization, climate change, & the color yellow! YouTube video by Hiba Tahir

This week on Tightwires, I spoke to Mariah Rigg @riggstah.bsky.social, author of EXTINCTION CAPITAL OF THE WORLD-- out today from @eccobooks.bsky.social! Kate Davis, former fiction editor of The Arkansas International and my best friend, co-hosted!
youtu.be/7cHaB5_TA6s

05.08.2025 20:53 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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The rise of AI tools that write about you when you die Families and funeral directors are using AI obituary generators to more efficiently memorialize the dead. What happens when they get it wrong?

New: A few weeks ago, when my father-in-law died, the funeral home asked if we wanted to use AI to write his obituary. So I dug into it and found that it's the biggest new trend in "death care." Tens of thousands of AI obits have been made already. Often the families don't even know wapo.st/4okuxIg

03.08.2025 11:47 πŸ‘ 1350 πŸ” 448 πŸ’¬ 112 πŸ“Œ 480

We started a new literary magazine with @colnol.bsky.social and @hhtahir.bsky.social!

Send us your work!

15.07.2025 20:40 πŸ‘ 5 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

One way to understand your own condition is to write something and spend a long time revising it. In revising you teach yourself. You find your own information buried in your body. It is still alive until you are not.

β€”Fanny Howe, RIP

10.07.2025 20:48 πŸ‘ 168 πŸ” 51 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
Palestinian-American Poet Mandy Shunnarah talks about wishes, waffles, and WE HAD MANSIONS!
Palestinian-American Poet Mandy Shunnarah talks about wishes, waffles, and WE HAD MANSIONS! YouTube video by Hiba Tahir

Hiba Tahir in conversation with Mandy Shunnarah

www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvRi...

23.06.2025 15:14 πŸ‘ 8 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Jfc.

22.06.2025 05:08 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Donald J. Trump
@realDonald Trump
I am very happy to report that I have arranged, along with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a wonderful Treaty between the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Republic of Rwanda, in their War, which was known for violent bloodshed and death, more so even than most other Wars, and has gone on for decades. Representatives from Rwanda and the Congo will be in Washington on Monday to sign Documents.
This is a Great Day for Africa and, quite frankly, a Great Day for the World! I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize for this, I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize for stopping the War between India and Pakistan, I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize for stopping the War between Serbia and Kosovo, I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize for keeping Peace between Egypt and Ethiopia (A massive Ethiopian built dam, stupidly financed by the United States of America, substantially reduces the water flowing into The Nile River), and I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize for doing the Abraham Accords in the Middle East which, if all goes well, will be loaded to the brim with additional Countries signing on, and will unify the Middle East for the first time in "The Ages!" No, I won't get Peace Prize no matter what I do, including Russia/Ukraine, and Israel/Iran, wh those outcomes may be. but the people know. and that's all that matters to me!

Donald J. Trump @realDonald Trump I am very happy to report that I have arranged, along with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a wonderful Treaty between the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Republic of Rwanda, in their War, which was known for violent bloodshed and death, more so even than most other Wars, and has gone on for decades. Representatives from Rwanda and the Congo will be in Washington on Monday to sign Documents. This is a Great Day for Africa and, quite frankly, a Great Day for the World! I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize for this, I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize for stopping the War between India and Pakistan, I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize for stopping the War between Serbia and Kosovo, I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize for keeping Peace between Egypt and Ethiopia (A massive Ethiopian built dam, stupidly financed by the United States of America, substantially reduces the water flowing into The Nile River), and I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize for doing the Abraham Accords in the Middle East which, if all goes well, will be loaded to the brim with additional Countries signing on, and will unify the Middle East for the first time in "The Ages!" No, I won't get Peace Prize no matter what I do, including Russia/Ukraine, and Israel/Iran, wh those outcomes may be. but the people know. and that's all that matters to me!

Mere hours before announced he'd ordered strikes on Iran, Trump was loudly complaining that he'll never get a Nobel Peace Prize.

22.06.2025 03:16 πŸ‘ 195 πŸ” 43 πŸ’¬ 11 πŸ“Œ 11
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ICE Arrests Mississippi Father at His Citizenship Hearing ICE arrested Kasper Eriksen, a Mississippi father, at his citizenship hearing, imprisoning him and threatening him with deportation.

Just. Wow.
"In Kocher’s analysis, since January, detentions of immigrants with no convictions or charges have had a relative growth 3 times greater than those of convicted criminalsβ€”the
1/
www.mississippifreepress.org/ice-arrests-...

22.05.2025 02:26 πŸ‘ 58 πŸ” 35 πŸ’¬ 8 πŸ“Œ 4
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Final Curve by Langston Hughes

#poetry #smallpoemsunday @tomsnarsky.bsky.social

11.05.2025 17:04 πŸ‘ 75 πŸ” 16 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1