1:00 - 1:45 PM
Events with a red asterisk* contain mature themes and content that may not be suitable for younger audience members.
*Rimes & Rhizomes: written ecologies in between worlds | feat. Indigo Terán, Celeste Jones, Alexander Ayers, and Emerald Medrano
Ecopoetics is our central theme. Our writing varies in form and genre, but we will all be considering the intersection and interaction between what is considered the “human world” (or civilization) and “nature” or the natural world. Through themes such as gender, space, diversity, and disturbance, we are looking to explore how our own social fabrics connect and clash with the worlds outside of them. Bookish (520 W. Olive Avenue)
Great Migrations: Love Letter to Latinx Adolescence | feat. Margarita Engle, René Rodríguez-Astacio, Stefan Leiva, and Antonia Cardinale
The task of becoming the person you were always meant to be starts to feel impossible around the ages 12 and 17. You’re “too young” to be an adult and at the same time “too old” to be a kid. It’s an overarching narrative that young adult writers know too well. Somewhere between chisme with our cousins and dodging the chancla—you grow up. With a world of possibilities unfolding before you, it can be easy to overlook your heritage. Here, we will spin stories of how our cultura lit the way as we migrated from adolescence into adulthood. CellPros Tower District (812 E. Olive Avenue)
*Chillin’ at the Park | feat. Nikolai Garcia, maestro gamin, Iris De Anda, and Tori Gesualdo
On a Saturday afternoon, a literary social gathering where four poets will replicate the vibes of a weekend hangout by referencing music, food, drinks, and casual discourse in poetic format. Bring a lawn chair; you’re invited to this carne asada. Broadway Parque (940 N. Broadway Street)
*Mental Health, Trauma, and the Power of Poetry | feat. M. K. Sullivan, Melineh Ani Yemenidjian, Ely Lupe, and Jamie Maxwell
This panel brings together writers who think deeply about mental health, emotional wellness, trauma, and the work of healing. Through poetry, they’ll explore how writing becomes a way to survive, to understand yourself, and to stay connected to others. The conversation will look at how poetry makes room for vulnerability and resilience, especially in communities that carry generational or ongoing harm. Panelists will reflect on how storytelling shapes experiences, releases cycles, and creates inclusive spaces. Hart's Haven Used Bookstore (950 N. Van Ness Avenue)
*Together We Rise | feat. Alexis Jaimes, Clara Ximena Roque-Wagner, Jake Terán, and Hope Cerna
Together We Rise highlights the civil unrest under the current regime. These poets will share work about the impact of immigration policies on families, the violence in Gaza, and the pain and frustration so many are feeling. These poets will show that as a community we must use poetry as a form of protest against corruption, cruelty, and brutality. Goldstein's Mortuary & Delicatessen (1279 N. Wishon Avenue)
*Beyond Masculinity: Poetry and Vulnerability | feat. Peter Lechuga, Jeffery Martin, Mike Bonifer, and Jake Terán
This panel brings together four published male poets in a conversation about masculinity, vulnerability, performance, and finding voice through poetry. Each poet will share from their own lived experience and published work, speaking honestly about what it means to grow up navigating expectations of masculinity while learning how to express emotion on the page. Writing can challenge the pressure to stay silent or to speak truth. Mi Cafesito Van Ness (1495 N. Van Ness Avenue)
She Who Speaks: A Black Woman’s Cypher | feat. Kwamise "LadyK" Fletcher, NeFesha Ruth Y'israel, Alexandria Benn, and Jazelle Marie
She Who Speaks: A Black Woman’s Cypher is a sacred, community-centered experience designed to uplift, affirm, and amplify the voices of Black women through poetry and spoken word. Blending elements of performance, storytelling, and collective witnessing, this cypher creates a brave space where participants can share their truths, explore identity, and engage in powerful dialogue rooted in lived experience. More than a showcase, it is an offering, honoring the richness, resilience, and rhythm of Black womanhood while inviting both participants and audience into a moment of connection, reflection, and healing. Spectrum Art Gallery (608 E. Olive Avenue)
*Sharpen Your Verbs | feat. Devoya Mayo, Soreath Hok, Michelle Morgante Del Rio, and Samantha Teteangco
The more uncertain our times, the more these four women writers lean into the power of words as both wisdom and weapons. Their diverse cultural backgrounds enrich their stories of the unseen struggles they carry for themselves, their families and communities. Together, they gather to give voice and hope, weaving a tapestry of poetry, short stories and creative nonfiction to comfort, shield, address, or expose. Summer Fox Brewing - Tower (1426 N. Van Ness Avenue)
Filipinx American Poets | readers to be announced
Full description to be announced. Tower Yoga Lotus Room (626 E. Olive Avenue)
*Brown and Proud: LGBTQ Poets Writing in Troubling Times | feat. Mateo Perez Lara, Steven Sanchez, Juan Luis Guzmán, and Eduardo Martinez-Leyva
Our work celebrates language, lineage, and queer imagination, moving across borderlands and classrooms, and inviting others to listen closely and connect. Now more than ever, our voices, lived experience, and stories matter. In times that ask for courage and clarity, these poets offer both, sharing stories that resist erasure and spark conversation. This event centers community, honors complexity, and welcomes you to witness artistry that is alive, urgent, and generous. Teazer World Tea Market (645 E. Olive Avenue)