Ja-born lawyer receives SK Arts grant to support new poetry anthology

REGINA, SK: Regina poet, lawyer, and author, Deidre S. Powell, has been awarded a $5,000 grant from SK Arts through the Building Arts Equity Program to support the completion of a new poetry anthology.Her proposal as detailed on the programme’s website is ‘to complete a poetry anthology documenting global atrocities through courtroom testimony form, amplifying silenced voices and bearing witness to human rights violations worldwide’.

The anthology would have been developed between December 1, 2025 and June 30, 2026.

“This grant allows me to dedicate the time and care necessary to complete this work,” said Powell. “I am deeply grateful to SK Arts, the government of Saskatchewan, Sask Lotteries, and SaskCulture for supporting art that speaks truth and preserves memory.

“As a Jamaican-born lawyer, mediator, and writer, and a regular contributor to The Jamaica Gleaner through my Immigration Corner column, this recognition is deeply meaningful. My work continues to be shaped by my Jamaican roots and a lifelong commitment to truth, justice, and storytelling,” Powell added.

SK Arts, established in 1948, is the oldest public arts funder in North America, and the second-oldest in the world after the Arts Council of Great Britain. They provide grants, programmes and services to individuals and groups whose activities have an impact on the arts in Saskatchewan, the website notes.

An arm’s-length agency of the government of Saskatchewan, it is dedicated to supporting artists and arts organisations across the province. Funding is provided by the government of Saskatchewan and Sask Lotteries, in partnership with SaskCulture.The complete list of awardees may be found at www-sk-arts.ca.