by Noni Ervin
(Inspired by Mr. Delbert Richardson’s “1619: Resistance/Resilience/Remembrance/Liberation” exhibit, November 2021 to January 2022, for the City of Seattle Arts & Culture, ARTS at King Street Station.)
Tell me again
About my melanin skin
And how my story began
On the soil, rich with minerals and precious stones
Hot dirt, clay, and sand.
by Amanda Ong
Thirty years ago, a poet from California moved to Seattle and sought out a group of fellow African American writers. Randee Eddins, a poet, had been a part of similar writing groups elsewhere but couldn’t find an established group here, so she decided to bring one together herself. In February 1992, the group, Seattle’s African American Writers’ Alliance (AAWA), held their first annual reading at Elliott Bay Book Company’s previous Pioneer Square location.
Continue reading Seattle’s African American Writers’ Alliance Turns 30 at Elliott Bay Bookstoreby Mark Van Streefkerk
The first-ever Kwanzaa Awards took place on Jan. 8 as an online ceremony that celebrated individuals and organizations, nominated by the community, for embodying Kwanzaa principles. The pandemic prevented an in-person gathering, but the spirit of Kwanzaa shone through in prerecorded candle lighting and libation ceremonies and a candid mother-daughter conversation about Kwanzaa.
Continue reading First Annual Kwanzaa Awards Recognizes Black Organizations and Individualsby Noni Ervin
Life is a combination of
Seconds and minutes and hours
Days, months, years
Decisions and journeys both pleasant and painful
