Fire Moves Faster

Author Maxine Beneba Clarke's fourth volume of poetry, How Decent Folk Behave (2021) is a captivating and thought-provoking collection of verse. She channels the anger and despair of the events of the past two years - bush fires, pandemic, Black Lives Matter, Me Too, refugees, climate change, deaths in custody, domestic violence - into accessible, meaningful poems that provide both a fresh approach and a reminder to maintain the rage. 

Beneba Clarke's poetry is political, addressing race, class and gender and the compounding impacts of privilege and power. In 'Something Sure' a mother talks to her son about growing up to be the sort of man who will stand up against domestic violence. 'Proximity' is about the victims of violence who never make the headlines. 'Wolf Pack' is about lone gunmen and the commonalities they share. 'The Monsters are Out' reminds us of the dangers on the streets and in our homes. 

Many of her poems are heartbreaking. 'Trouble Walking' speaks of health care for people of colour. 'Muscle Memory' reminds readers of the impact of the pandemic on people of colour and the racism experienced. 'Home to Biloela' about the Muragappan family and their brutal treatment by the Australian government. 

Beneba Clarke provokes readers, forcing them to stare into the ugly corners of our world, She is so direct and concise in her language, there is no ambiguity in her verse.  Her poem 'Capital' is a damning indictment on Australia's Parliament concluding with 'this place/is where women/get raped'.

The final verse in this collection is 'Fire Moves Faster' - a searing 20-page reflection on 2020 starting with the bushfires and continuing through lockdowns, home-schooling, the death of George Floyd, the US election and more. Despite the challenging subject matter, and the way in which Beneba Clarke holds up a mirror to us all, there is something deeply hopeful in her verse.  

I loved this collection of poetry and will return to it time and again to make sense of this period in our lives. The collection is prefaced with a quote for Nina Simone - 'An artist's duty, as far as I'm concerned, is to reflect the times.' Beneba Clarke has done this, capturing a time, a mood, and a moment in history. Absolutely brilliant.