최돈미 시인 맥아더 펠로십 25인 선정

시집 'DMZ 콜로니'로 군사폭력과 미제국주의 폐해 증언 

 

 

시애틀의 시인이자 번역가 최돈미(Don Mee Choi, 59)씨가 2021 맥아더 펠로쉽(MacArthur Fellowship) 수상자 25인 중 한명으로 선정됐다. 상금은 62만5천달러로 5년에 걸쳐 '사용처 조건 없이' 지급된다.

 

맥아더 재단은  최돈미씨가 시집 'DMZ Colony'으로"군사적 폭력과 미국의 제국주의가 한반도의 민간인들에게 미치는 영향을 증언했다"고 선정  이유를 밝혔다. 이전의 한인 수상자로는 2003년 김용 세계은행 총재가 있다. https://www.macfound.org/programs/fellows

 

1962년 서울에서 태어난 최돈미씨는 시애틀로 이주한 후 시작과 번역일을 해왔다.   2019년엔 김혜순 시인의 '죽음의 자서전(Autobiography of Death)'를 번역해 국제그리핀시상을 수상했다. 시집 'DMZ 콜로니'로 2020년 미도서상 시 부문을 수상했으며, 올해 구겐하임 펠로십으로 선정되기도 했다. 저서로 '모닝 뉴스는 흥미롭다'(The Morning News Is Exciting, 2010), '자그마한 선언문'(Petite Manifesto, 2014), '전쟁이 일어나자마자'(Hardley War, 2016) 등이 있다.  https://www.donmeechoi.com

https://webzine.munjang.or.kr/archives/11738

 

 

MacArthur Fellows 2021

 

A selection of MacArthur fellows from the Class of 2021 (left to right, top row to bottom): Hanif Abdurraqib, Daniel Alarcón, Reginald Dwayne Betts, Jordan Casteel, Don Mee Choi, Nicole Fleetwood, Cristina Ibarra, Ibram X. Kendi, Daniel Lind-Ramos, Monica Muñoz Martinez, Safiya Noble, Alex Rivera, Jacqueline Stewart, Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor and Jawole Willa Jo Zollar.  John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

 

 

Hanif Abdurraqib, 38, music critic, essayist and poet

"Forging a distinctive style of cultural and artistic criticism through the lens of popular music and autobiography."

 

Daniel Alarcón, 44, writer and radio producer

"Chronicling the social and cultural ties that connect Spanish-speaking communities across the Americas."

 

Marcella Alsan, 44, physician-economist

"Investigating the role that legacies of discrimination and resulting mistrust play in perpetuating racial disparities in health."

 

Trevor Bedford, 39, computational virologist

"Developing tools for real-time tracking of virus evolution and the spread of infectious diseases."

 

Reginald Dwayne Betts, 40, poet and lawyer

"Promoting the humanity and rights of individuals who are or have been incarcerated."

 

Jordan Casteel, 32, painter

"Capturing everyday encounters with people of color in portraits that invite reciprocal recognition of our shared humanity."

 

Don Mee Choi, 59, poet and translator

"Bearing witness to the effects of military violence and U.S. imperialism on the civilians of the Korean Peninsula."

 

Ibrahim Cissé, 38, cellular biophysicist

"Developing microscopy tools to investigate the subcellular processes underlying genetic regulation and misfunction."

 

Nicole Fleetwood, 48, art historian and curator

"Elucidating the cultural and aesthetic significance of visual art created by incarcerated people."

 

Cristina Ibarra, 49, documentary filmmaker

"Crafting nuanced narratives about borderland communities, often from the perspective of Chicana and Latina youth."

 

Ibram X. Kendi, 39, American historian and cultural critic

"Advancing conversations around anti-Black racism and possibilities for repair in a variety of initiatives and platforms."

 

Daniel Lind-Ramos, 68, sculptor and painter

"Transforming everyday objects into assemblages that speak to the global connections inherent in Afro-Caribbean and diaspora legacies."

 

Monica Muñoz Martinez, 37, public historian

"Bringing to light long-obscured cases of racial violence along the U.S.-Mexico border and their reverberations in the present.

 

Desmond Meade, 54, civil rights activist

"Working to restore voting rights to formerly incarcerated citizens and remove barriers to their full participation in civic life."

 

Joshua Miele, 52, adaptive technology designer

"Developing devices to enable blind and visually impaired people to access everyday technologies and digital information."

 

Michelle Monje, 45, neurologist and neuro-oncologist

"Advancing understanding of pediatric brain cancers and the effects of cancer treatments with an eye toward improved therapies for patients."

 

Safiya Noble, 51, digital media scholar

"Highlighting the ways digital technologies and internet architectures magnify racism, sexism, and harmful stereotypes."

 

J. Taylor Perron, 44, geomorphologist

"Deconstructing the physical processes that create landforms on Earth and other planetary bodies."

 

Alex Rivera, 48, filmmaker and media artist

"Exploring issues around migration to the United States and exploitative labor practices with an activist orientation."

 

Lisa Schulte Moore, 50, landscape ecologist

"Implementing locally relevant approaches to improve soil and water quality and strengthen the resilience of row crop agriculture."

 

Jesse Shapiro, 41, applied microeconomist

"Devising new frameworks of analysis to advance understanding of media bias, ideological polarization, and the efficacy of public policy interventions."

 

Jacqueline Stewart, 51, cinema studies scholar and curator

"Ensuring that the contributions of overlooked Black filmmakers and communities of spectators have a place in the public imagination."

 

Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, 49, historian

"Analyzing the political and economic forces underlying racial inequality and the role of social movements in transforming society."

 

Victor J. Torres, 44, microbiologist

"Investigating how bacterial pathogens overcome the immune system and identifying potential therapies."

 

Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, 70, choreographer and dancer

"Using the power of dance and artistic expression to elevate the voices of Black women and promote civic engagement."