About this Event

Celebrate the written and spoken word!

Join the Poetry as Activism Project team to explore how poetry can be used for activist interventions. Festivities include showcases where students and community members will read and perform poetry. There will also be a roundtable discussion about archiving activism at the University of Delaware, opportunities to look closer at rare and historic materials, and more!

If you are interested in participating in the student or community showcases by reading or performing works of poetry, please sign up here.

Attendees are encouraged to stop in throughout the festival to enjoy an array of activities.

The festivities kick off at 11:30 with an open house in Special Collections, where attendees are invited to explore materials that speak to the themes of the Poetry as Activism Project. The main program begins at 1 p.m. in the Class of 1941 Lecture Room with the student showcase.

Seating is limited. This in-person event is open to the public.

Registration is requested. The event will not be recorded.

 

The event is part of the Mellon-funded Poetry as Activism Project. The program is supported, in part, by the Wilmington Public Library as well as a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on DelawareScene.com.

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The schedule is as follows: 

11:30 a.m.-12:45 p.m.: Open House
Morris Library Special Collections Reading Room

View materials digitized for the Poetry as Activism Project and archival materials related to activism in Delaware! 

Curated in partnership with Arline Wilson and Mark Samuels Lasner. 

 

1-1:50 p.m.: Student Showcase hosted by Richard Raw
Class of 1941 Lecture Room, Morris Library 

With performances by Joelle Caternor, Maiss Hussein, Morgan Sims, Micah White, Holli Flanagan, and more! 

 

2-3 p.m.: Community Showcase hosted by Richard Raw
Class of 1941 Lecture Room, Morris Library

With performances by Yalonda JD Green, Rev. Dr. Tracy Keenan, Dana Kinsey, Claire McCabe, Colin Miller, Al Mills, Ebony Rashidah, Dennise Spence, Dr. Margaret D. Stetz, and SuiteFranchon

 

3:15-3:45 p.m.: Lightning Talks & Conversation: Literary Placemaking and Curating Activism
Class of 1941 Lecture Room​​​​​​​, Morris Library 

Moderated by Traci Currie, Poetry as Activism Poet-in-Residence and Poetry Out Loud Delaware State Coordinator

With panelists Ellen Cappard, owner of Books & Bagels, Britney Henry, doctoral candidate in English at UD, and Ian Janssen, Director of University Archives and Records Management   

 

4-4:30 p.m.: Poetry as Activism Reflection
Class of 1941 Lecture Room​​​​​​​, Morris Library 

Moderated by Jeannette Schollaert, Project Manager, Poetry as Activism

With panelists Traci Currie, Lori Birrell, Director of Special Collections and Museums, and Annie Johnson, Associate University Librarian for Publishing, Preservation, Research and Digital Access. 

 

1-5 p.m.: Explore Vendor Offerings in Morris Library Room 114, including selections from independent bookstores Books & Bagels and Huxley & Hiro.  

 

After the Festival, we encourage attendees to continue the on-campus celebrations of literary arts by attending the Gregory Family Celebration of Creative Writing, which begins at 6:00 p.m. in Memorial Hall.