Chris Abani on Tenderness, James Baldwin, and Trying to Write About the Refugee Experience

Chris Abani talks to Paul Holdengraber about tenderness, Yoruban creation myths, and trying to write an essay about the refugee experience.

Chris Abani on writing an essay on the refugee experience…
How does my personal understanding of having been a refugee open up into something bigger, something worthy beyond my personal account?

Chris Abani on the profound…
The difficulty in language, when trying to allude to something profound, is that it can seem flippant.

Chris Abani on tenderness…
I aspire to be more tender but I fail at it every day, but that’s part of the beauty of aspiration, that we must reach sincerely, understanding that maybe we can never succeed, but that in reaching for it opens up a new tributary in our understanding.