Greater Boston Writers Resist

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Jan 16, 2017  |  Hundreds of Greater Boston residents convened at the Boston Public Library yesterday for a demonstration of shared commitment to the rights and values essential to a democracy.  The program featured authors, civic leaders, and young writers, as well as special guests Anita Walker, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and Boston City Councilor Ayanna Pressley.

The goal of Greater Boston Writers Resist was not only to articulate values and reflect critically on the historical moment—though these are crucial activities; democracy is an empire of the word—but also to bolster our common will to act. We must commit to a sustained and intensely personal defense of these rights and values while supporting civic institutions that nurture them.

Watch the complete video of the reading:

I would suggest one concrete act here. Make a donation—right now, why not?—to a worthy civic institution, such as the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition (MIRA). Comprising 130 service organizations, MIRA provides critical support to a community that has been explicitly targeted. Consider a donation to help defend our friends, neighbors, and family. It only takes a minute.

I want to extend my very sincere thanks to the participants, the far-greater-than-capacity audience, my fellow organizers, and the many event co-sponsors.

—Daniel Evans Pritchard

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Five days before Donald Trump swears to preserve and protect the Constitution of the United States, on the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr, writers & activists will gather in fifty cities across three continents for a counter-inaugural demonstration: #WritersResist.

Members of Greater Boston’s diverse communities will come together on that day at the iconic Boston Public Library to re-inaugurate our shared commitment to free expression, civil rights, and the values essential to a democracy.

The event will feature two acts with a brief intermission. Space will be limited and seats will be made available on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Readings and performances in ACT I (1:30 pm start) by Rob Arnold, Laura van den Berg, Michelle Garcia, Krysten Hill, Richard Hoffman, Helen Elaine Lee, Jennifer De Leon, Marianne Leone, Michael Lowenthal, and Alma Richeh, with a special guest introduction.

Readings and performances in ACT II (est. 3:00 pm start) by Jabari Asim, Liana Asim, James Carroll, Martha Collins, Kofi Dadzie, Martín Espada, Danielle Legros Georges, Jennifer Haigh, Giles Li, Fred Marchant, Dale Peterson, Marta Rivera, and Alexis Rizzuto, with a special guest.

Greater Boston Writers Resist
January 15, 2017 / 1:30 pm
Rabb Hall, Boston Public Library
Entrance at 700 Boylston

The event is free to all. Doors open at 1:00 pm.

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You can also connect with the Boston event on Facebook.

If you have questions about Greater Boston Writers Resist, contact Critical Flame founding editor Daniel Evans Pritchard: daniel [at] danielevanspritchard [dot] com.

Greater Boston Writers Resist is independently organized and co-sponsored by PEN New England, Beacon Press, Aforementioned Productions, AGNI, Arrowsmith Press, Black Ocean, Blacksmith House Poetry Series, Boston Book Festival, Boston Review, the Center for Arabic Culture, the City of Boston’s Office of New Bostonians and Office of the Poet Laureate, CONSEQUENCE magazine, Dominican Development Center, The Greater Boston Latino Network, Grub Street, Harvard Bookstore, Harvard Review, Louder than a Bomb, Mass LEAP, Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, Memorious, Ploughshares, The Poets’ Theater, PoemWorks, Post Road, Salamander, the UMASS-Boston Creative Writing MFA, the Woodberry Poetry Room, and The Critical Flame.

For more information about other WR events visit writersresist.org.