October Events Recap
CLXLA Continues to Provide a Variety of Program Offerings
From its Poetry & Performance Reading Series to catching up with The Chi writer Kristiana Rae Colon, CLXLA continues to focus on diverse programming. This month also included a partnership with the Lit & Luz Festival. Here is a brief recap of our events this past month.
On October 10th , CLXLA hosted its second Poetry & Performance Reading Series at Madison Street Books. Edgar Garcia and Ghayath Almadhoun were the featured poets of the evening. Edgar Garcia shared pieces from his book Skins of Columbus: A Dream Ethnography, while Ghayath Almadhoun offered the audience an immersive translation experience. Using poetry from his collection Adrenalin, Almadhoun read the Arabic originals while Daniel Borzutzky, CLXLA's director, read the English translation. UIC Program for Writer graduate students Katrina Washington and Jules Wood joined our invited readers. Washington read from her novel-in-progress, and Wood read from her poetry that thematically involves sex worker rights. Ghayath Almadhoun also led a writing workshop for UIC graduate students the following day, in which he introduced students to the genre of poetry videos.
On October 19th, CLXA hosted its second virtual Black-Latinx Colloquium. UIC Assistant Professor of Black Studies, Dr. Jaira Harrington, led a wonderful conversation with poet and screenwriter Kristiana Rae Colón. In her talk, Colón focused on the intersections of her work as a community activist with her creative output, sharing the history of her life as a poet and playwright and her on-the-ground work after the murder of George Floyd. She also discussed the transition from writing poetry to writing for the Showtime original series The Chi.
October 31st marked the first event in CLXLA's collaboration with MAKE Literary's Lit & Luz Fest. Writer, Anthony Cody, kicked off Lit & Luz's programming with a keynote address. If you missed this virtual event, you can watch the recording here. Cody addressed the theme for this year’s Lit and Luz Festival, “Revision,” and he shared important insights both about his family history and his off-the-page writing process. Cody interspersed his talk with readings of his poetry, and the event culminated with a conversation between Cody and CLXLA director Daniel Borzutzky.
