Erase the Patriarchy contains poems that wrestle back power and agency from men who have directly harmed marginalized communities. Contributors take speeches, #metoo “apologies,” historical documents, literature, etc. and destroy them in order to create truly beautiful art. There are poems made by actually erasing or whiting out text, as the title suggests, and poems that redact or black out text. There are poems that digitally alter text and poems that use all kinds of different creative mediums, ranging from collage to pantry staples like sugar, to reclaim text.

One of my favorite poems, “remember 2017” appears in the Journalism & Media section. Caren Florance and Melinda Smith take a public statement made by Don Burke, an Australian media personality who was accused of harassment and assault, and they cover the statement with dirt, leaves, and twigs, leaving only a dozen or so words visible on each page. It’s not only visually stunning and provocative—evoking the filth of Burke’s actions—but also delivers a powerful message, twisting his denial into a confession:

I am deeply base.
I intended to severely damage.

I deal such a bitter
sexism and misogyny.

There is catharsis emanating from these poems; they put the words that many survivors need to hear in the mouths of predators, force a sense of accountability into their statements. And these artists don’t just take down perpetrators of sexual harassment with their erasures—they also create art that “critiques . . . anti-immigration policies; statements made against queer and disabled people; antisemitism; nations founded on inequality,” among other subjects.

The poems in this anthology are inspiring. As soon as I flipped through the book and read some of the artist statements, I started itching to make my own erasure poems. I immediately printed out two texts for this: the infamous biblical passage from Psalm 31 on the “ideal” woman and JK Rowling’s anti-trans manifesto. Blacking out these texts and turning them into poems about gender exploration and sexuality felt empowering. If you feel overwhelmed or beaten down by those who have power over you, grab a copy of Erase the Patriarchy, get inspired, and make some radical art by erasing a distressing text.