Split This Rock Celebrates 10 Years of Poetry in the Streets!
Dissent and action for social justice. Diversity and inclusivity. Artistic excellence. These are just a few of the core values Split This Rock was founded on. For ten years, Split This Rock has cultivated, taught, and celebrated poetry that bears witness to injustice and provokes change. As more poets become engaged in writing and organizing for justice, Split This Rock leads the charge with festivals, publications, and programs that challenge power and sustain us in perilous times.
Split This Rock’s 10 For 10 Campaign
Celebrate 10 years of poetry, witness, and resistance by supporting Split This Rock's 10 for the 10th campaign: 10 Years of Poetry, Witness & Resistance! #10YearsofPoWeR
Pledge $10 per Month to Split This Rock – Go to the donate page to enter your credit card information one time and it automatically charges your card $10 each month. Couldn’t be easier! http://www.splitthisrock.org/donate
Tell 10 Friends About Split This Rock - Post to Twitter/Facebook/Instagram and tag 10 friends:
Join me for a week-long celebration of Split This Rock's 10th Anniversary: 10 years of Poetry, Witness, and Resistance - #10YearsofPoWeR http://bit.ly/2p90TtG
ACTIVITIES
10th Anniversary Kick-off Week: March 17-24, 2018
This March marks 10 years of cultivating, teaching, and celebrating poetry that bears witness to injustice and provokes change. Split This Rock's participation in the national Poetry Coalition's month-long series, Where My Dreaming and My Loving Live: Poetry & the Body, coincides with this week of celebration.
In addition, please take a moment to read "I L L N E S S: A Flash Memoir Prologue" written by Jeanann Verlee for this project.
Saturday, March 17 - Youth Open Mic & DC Youth Slam Team Last Chance Slam Featuring Jeanann Verlee
From 5-7 pm, the DC Youth Open Mic features renowned poet Jeanann Verlee, followed by a qualifying slam for the DC Youth Slam Team. Youth between the ages of 13 and 19 years old are eligible to compete for a spot on the team. Find more info and how to sign up to slam on the Facebook event page.
Sunday, March 18 - Special 10th Anniversary Sunday Kind of Love! Featuring Jeanann Verlee & Lauren May
On March 18, from 5-8 pm, we're extending Sunday Kind of Love Open Mic and Reading an extra hour to celebrate - hosted by Regie Cabico. We will be screening videos of past festivals and inviting members of the community up on stage. Share your favorite story, poem, or reason why you support Split This Rock. Plus 10th anniversary cake donated by Ravenhook Bakehouse! Our featured readers will be Lauren May and Jeanann Verlee.
Lauren is a 21-year-old writer and human rights advocate. An alumna of the award-winning DC Youth Slam Team, Lauren is part of Split This Rock's Ushindi Performance Group. She has featured as a guest speaker at MCASA's 10th Annual Women of Color Network Conference, the National Conference on Health and Domestic Violence, and The White House United State of Women Summit.
Jeanann is a is a 2017 NEA Poetry Fellow and the author of Said the Manic to the Muse ( Write Bloody Publishing, 2015) and Racing Hummingbirds (2010), which was awarded a silver medal in the Independent Publisher Awards. Her third book, prey, was first runner-up for the Benjamin Saltman Poetry Award and will be published by Black Lawrence Press in 2018. She received the Third Coast Poetry Prize and the Sandy Crimmins National Prize, and her work appears in Adroit, BOAAT, Rattle, and BuzzFeed Reader, among others.
$5 online or at the door (if available) Tickets go on sale at midnight on March 18! Find out more on the Facebook event page.
Friday, March 23 - Louder Than a Gun: Open Mic For Our Lives
On March 23, 5-7 pm, Split This Rock Youth Programs, together with Busboys and Poets and SixDegrees.org, will host a special Open Mic to highlight the voices of young activists the day before the March For Our Lives. Find out more info on the Facebook page.
Saturday, March 24 - DC Youth Slam Team Finals!
On March 24, 7-9 pm, the DC Youth Slam Team Finals will feature the previous three slam winners, Kenny Carroll, Gaelyn Smith, and Bobbi Johnson, at the Arena Stage in DC. Tickets are available for purchase here.
Wednesday June 20 - 10th Anniversary Writing Workshop
SPECIAL GUEST FACILITATORS: CELESTE DOAKS & KATY RICHEY OF THE BLACK LADIES BRUNCH COLLECTIVE
Wednesday, June 20, 6:30-8:30 pm, FREE
1301 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC
Join us for a FREE writing workshop led by members of The Black Ladies Brunch Collective, celeste doaks and Katy Richey. The Black Ladies Brunch Collective is a group of Black women poets dedicated to creating spaces of joy and celebration as an act of resistance. This workshop is part of Split This Rock's bi-monthly writing workshop series which offers workshops on the 1st & 3rd Wednesdays of every month. All writing levels are welcome; no need to RSVP. Find out more about this workshop on the Facebook page.
10th Anniversary Master Class with Ross Gay
Sunday, June 24, 2-5 pm
1301 Connnecticut Ave NW, Suite 600
Open to First Individuals to Donate $100 or More to Split This Rock
In celebration of Split This Rock's 10th anniversary and to raise funds for the organization's essential work, Split This Rock's Board of Directors present Ross Gay, winner of the Kingsley Tufts Award and National Book Award Finalist, for its 10th Anniversary Master Class Series. Led by past festival Featured Poets, each Master Class is open to the first 20 individuals who donate $100 or more to Split This Rock. Writers of all levels of experience are welcome to participate. Whether you attend yourself, donate the experience to someone as a gift, or donate it back to a Split This Rock community youth poet, your gift will support the overall work of Split This Rock. Learn more and secure your seat at the Ross Gay Master Class online.