I first met Abiodun Oyewole in 2003. I was cohost to phatLiterature, A Literary TV Program, which broadcast on public access and college stations throughout the country. We did an episode entitled “Political Poetry,” and I asked Abiodun if he would be interested in participating and he said yes. We’ve been in each other’s sphere ever since.
Ray DiZazzo is an interesting guy. He’s a filmmaker, instructor, and has written several books on corporate media production. My acquaintance began with him as a contributor of WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE IN AMERICA (2016). When we agreed to work together, the first thing was to focus on tightening the poetry. When our poetry editor, Sean Dillon, raised some points, Ray was all in.
When I approached Papo in 2017 about doing a book, the goal was to launch a chapbook division at 2Leaf Press, with his chapbook being the first. He came up with the idea of PAPOLíTICO, which I immediately loved. I loved the idea of publishing some politically inspired poetry, especially in the surreal age we find ourselves living in today.
I first heard Youssef Alaoui recite poetry from a DVD that filmmaker Vagabond produced and played for me, and I found his poetry well-written and very interesting. When I got to know Youssef better, I found him equally interesting, a Latino Moroccan poet who speaks three languages living in California. While he is well-known and well-respected in his local community, I never heard of him, but I wanted to know more about him and his work.
Black lives have always mattered because all lives matter. This is what editor Abiodun Oyewole sets out to prove in our latest volume on race.
WHITE IN AMERICA New England Contributors J. Kates, Meg J. Petersen, Deborah Mashibini-Prior, Barbara Beckwith and Debby Irving at Toadstool Bookshops on Nov. 5th at 11 AM.
Porter Square Books in Cambridge, MA hosts New England contributors of WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE IN AMERICA? on Nov. 4th at 7 PM.
We are pleased to announce the forthcoming publication of Vagabond’s first book, NOTHING TO BE GAINED HERE, to be published under 2Leaf Press’ NUYORICAN WORLD SERIES in November, 2016.
NW Contributors of WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE IN AMERICA? were featured by RACE TALKS, a monthly series hosted by Donna Maxey at McMenamins Kennedy School on July 12, 2016, in Portland, Oregon. CHECK OUT THE VIDEO!
2Leaf Press announces the publication of the poetry collections, TARTESSOS AND OTHER CITIES by Claire Millikin and OFF COURSE: ROUNDABOUTS & DEVIATIONS by A. Robert Lee, their second books of poetry with 2Leaf Press.