Sami Shalom Chetrit

Poet, writer, teacher, and filmmaker Sami Shalom Chetrit was born in Morocco and raised in Israel. He has been writing and publishing poetry for 30 years, and has published five poetry collections in Hebrew, including: Zeman Morocco (Morocco Time) (Bimat Kedem, 2015); Yehudim (Jews) (Nahar Books, 2007); and Shirim Be’ashdodit (Poems in Ashdodian) (Andalus, 2003), which inspired a musical production. His book Jews (Červaná Barva Press, 2014) is a collection of translated poems in English.

Chetrit has also published a novel, Ein Habuba (Doll’s Eye) (Hargol-Am Oved, 2007; translated in English 2013) and the scholarly work Intra-Jewish Conflict in Israel: White Jews, Black Jews (Routledge, 2009). Chetrit has also produced and directed three documentary films, including most recently Shattered Rhymes: The Life and Poetry of Erez Bitton (2013).

Chetrit is an associate professor of Hebrew and Middle Eastern studies at Queens College, CUNY. He lives in New York City.