Amiri Baraka is a poet with an edge.

As poet laureate of New Jersey, Baraka’s job requires him to be the voice of poets and poetry in his state. Recently, a great deal of controversy erupted over his poem “Somebody Blew Up America,” a biting look at terrorism and atrocities ignored or overlooked throughout history.

To some, the poem was a masterpiece of satire and free speech. To others, it was grounds for his dismissal as New Jersey’s poet laureate.

At 8 p.m. Thursday, Baraka will speak as a part of the lecture series “Revolutionary Art for Cultural Revolution!” in the Sun Room of the Memorial Union about his work and of the controversy.

Pat Miller, director of the Lectures Program, says one of the main goals of the lecture series is to increase students’ awareness of different ways of thinking.To many, the most controversial portion of Baraka’s poem alludes to Israeli workers in the World Trade Center knowing of the Sept. 11 attacks before they occurred.

With lines such as “Who knew the World Trade Center was gonna get bombed /Who told 4000 Israeli workers at the Twin Towers /To stay home that day/Why did Sharon stay away?”, Baraka’s poem sparked the attention of the Anti-Defamation League, a group that supports the Jewish community in America. The league wrote a letter to New Jersey governor James McGreevey asking for Baraka’s resignation.

Despite McGreevey’s request for Baraka’s resignation, poet laureates cannot be fired under New Jersey law — they can only resign on their own. Baraka chose not to honor McGreevey’s requests and has stood behind his poem and his position.

Baraka believes he is not guilty of the accusations of anti-Semitism, and the requests for him to apologize and step down as laureate were unfounded, according to a statement on Baraka’s Web site, www.amiribaraka.com, on Oct. 2.

“No, I will not apologize, I will not resign,” Baraka says in the statement. “In fact I will continue to do what I have appointed to do but still have not been paid to do. Publicize and Popularize poetry and poets throughout this state. To set up new venues and new networks for poetry reading and workshops, in the state’s libraries and schools and other institutions … we will ask that poets poet on!”

The recent controversy over “Somebody Blew Up America” and the other works Baraka has completed in his career will probably trigger many questions from the audience, Miller says.

“This man has not been afraid to say strong statements,” Miller says. “It should make for an interesting exchange with the audience.”

Though some find his work upsetting, Brad Johnson, senior in meteorology and president of the Black Student Alliance, says the best way for students to judge what Amiri Baraka is about is to listen to the poet himself.

“The only way you can figure out what a person really means is by hearing it for yourself,” Johnson says. “Some of his stuff may be controversial, but he does have a lot of positive things to say.”

Who: Amiri Baraka

Where: Sun Room, Memorial Union

When: 8 p.m. Thursday

Cost: Free