“A poem can of course be a confrontation; a provocation; a pastoral ode to the wild turkeys of Staten Island; an address to the recreant father; a lament; a love letter; an assertion of dignity. In Still, We Are Sacred, Emanuel Xavier delivers on all these fronts, and more, with hard-won honesty and rhythmic urgency.”

—Justin Torres, author of Blackouts and We the Animals

 

"Emanuel Xavier offers a powerful new voice in this collection that explores an identity rooted in fragmentary lineages, mourning, and the everyday euphoria of 'brown hands, queer hearts.' Absences between words, signifying, come to life as ghosts, sharing all their secrets. Still, We Are Sacred blesses us as if goodbye were a greeting, a battle cry, and a sigil."

 —Roque Raquel Salas Rivera, author of Algarabía

 

“Each poem is a revelation—unearthed, urgent, and unapologetically alive. Emanuel’s words celebrate the beauty of being brown, queer, and irreverent. This collection is a lifeline for those who feel buried alive under the weight of machismo, racismo y ellos mismo.”

—Caridad de la Luz, performer and poet

 

“The first poem in Still, We Are Sacred puts a shotgun in your mouth and screams "try me" — and then it drops you, and the next poem drops you, and by the time you're finished with this collection you're almost as wounded as the poet; almost because you only understand the poems because Emanuel lets you. These poems are brilliant and masterful. Emanuel's poems embed into you. What do you do/when the island in your heart/turns out to be driftwood? ... [you] float./ [you] murmur./ [you] dare to be soft/& survive.”

—John Compton, poet