Social Justice Poetry Event
Thursday, November 14, 2024
12:00 to 1:00pm /PT
A FREE Virtual Event
Unable to attend? Sign up for the replay!
Zoom link provided upon registration
Poetry gets at the truth more so than any other form of the written and spoken word. And, of course, it is those poetic truth-tellers who help us see and hear what is so often hidden from us and what we must know. This event is timed and designed to be on the other side of the election, after what is likely to be a brutal political season, when we will need social justice poets and their vital truths, more than ever. Hope you can join us for this special night of community!
The Featured Poets:
Zoë Flowers is a versatile artist, advocate, poet, and healing practitioner with a body of
work that encompasses various mediums with a diverse body of work featured in numerous anthologies, journals, and interviews. In 2004, she embarked on a transformative journey, interviewing survivors of domestic and sexual violence, which led to the publication of her books, From Ashes to Angel’s Dust: A Journey Through Womanhood and In Praise of The Wytch.
Zoë is a sought-after speaker, lending her powerful voice to platforms such as National Public Radio, WGBH Boston, and various articles and online publications. With over 300 conference appearances, she captivates audiences with her expertise on racial equity, reaching underserved communities, art as a healing methodology, gender-based violence, and a range of other vital topics.
As a skilled healer, Zoë facilitates transformative individual and group sessions, retreats, and workshops in locations spanning from New York to Ecuador. Her unique approach integrates holistic practices that foster deep healing and personal growth.
Zoë’s artistic talents extend to the realms of film, theatrical productions, and books, inviting audiences to explore social issues, healing, and spirituality. Her compelling work has been showcased at renowned events and institutions, including The Black Women’s Arts Festival, Alternate ROOTS, The White House’s United State of Women Summit, prestigious universities like Yale and Brown, and community-based organizations across the United States.
With a rich tapestry of experiences and an unwavering commitment to social change and healing, Zoë Flowers continues to inspire and uplift individuals and communities on their path to empowerment and transformation.
Christopher Marmolejo, MA, Is A Brown, Queer, And Trans Writer, Diviner, And Educator. They Use Divination To Promote A Literacy Of Liberation.
They Were Born And Raised In San Bernardino, California, Among The Pines, In Community With The Yuhaaviatam Clan Of The Maara’yam (Serrano).
With Nine-Plus Years Of Experience As Trained Educator Focused On Cultivating Classrooms Of Emancipatory Possibility, They Work With Students Around The World To Plant And Nurture The Seed Of A Divinatory Practice, Finely Weaving Tarot, Astrology, And Curanderismo With Critical, Decolonial Black Queer Feminist Epistemology.
Granddaughter Crow (Dr Joy Gray) holds a doctorate in leadership. Internationally recognized as a medicine woman, she comes from a long line of spiritual leaders as a member of the Navajo Nation.
She is an international award-winning author and poet. Her books include The Journey of the Soul, Wisdom of the Natural World, and Belief, Being, & Beyond. In 2024, she gives respect to her lineage as she is an Honored Listee in Who’s Who in America.
Additionally, she is a member of the Delta Mu Delta Honor International Society in Business due to her academic achievements. Voted in as Woman of the Year 2015 by the National Association of Professional Women.
She truly is a conduit for wisdom and transformation between the western and native worlds. More than that, she has dedicated her life to inspiring, encouraging, and empowering individuals to be their authenticity.
Joan Gelfand is the author of three collections of poetry, a chapbook of short fiction and a novel set in a Silicon Valley startup, Joan has taught for California Poets in the Schools, The Writing Salon and the San Francisco Writer’s Conference. In January, 2024 Outside Voices: A Memoir of the Berkeley
Revolution, published by Post Hill Press won the International Book Awards for US History.
Joan’s work has appeared in national and international publications including The Huffington Post, The LA Review of Books, The “J,” and The San Francisco Chronicle. Joan’s bio can be found in “Who’s Who in America.” http://joangelfand.com
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Cooking & Food Writing Panel
How to Get a Book Deal
Ellen McBarnette is a lifelong writer whose nonfiction work has been published as testimony, fact sheets, and opinion pieces for organizations that include the Sierra Club and the American Bar Association. A professional storyteller, she is a recent transplant from Washington, DC where she ran the Arlington Creative Nonfiction Writers Group. She now runs the Beta Readers and Writers Group and is an active participant in critique groups in the Bay. She lives in Hayward with her partner Ben and their cat Java.
Mary Mackey is the New York Times bestselling author of fourteen novels, including The Earthsong Series—four novels which describe how the peaceful Goddess-worshiping people of Prehistoric Europe fought off patriarchal nomad invaders (The Village of Bones, The Year The Horses Came, The Horses at the Gate, and The Fires of Spring). They have made The New York Times and San Francisco Chronicle Bestseller Lists, been translated into twelve foreign languages, and sold over a million and a half copies. She has published several collections of poetry, including Sugar Zone and The Jaguars That Prowl Our Dreams. You can get the latest news about Mary’s books, public appearances, newsletter, and writing advice at marymackey.com.
Sheila Smith McKoy, PHD is an award-winning poet, fiction writer, and filmmaker. She is the recipient of the 2020 Muriel Craft Bailey Memorial Prize in poetry. Her poetry collections include The Bones Beneath (Black Lawrence Press, 2024) One Window’s Light: A Haiku Collection, a collaboration of five Black poets; the collection won the 2017 Haiku Society of America’s Merit Book Award for best haiku anthology. In addition to her poetry and fiction, Smith McKoy has authored and edited numerous scholarly works. She focuses on vital conversations about equity, inclusion and the Black speculative. A native of Raleigh, NC, she lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Vanessa MacLaren-Wray writes science fiction and fantasy about people—human and otherwise—connecting in our complex universe. She’s the author of the Patchwork Universe series: All That Was Asked, Shadows of Insurrection, and Flames of Attrition. She also writes for the Truck Stop at the Center of the Galaxy shared-world series and guest-hosts for the podcast Small Publishing in a Big Universe. She’s an active member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association, the California Writers Club, and (of course) the WNBA. When not arguing with her cats, she works on new stories, her email journal, Messages from the Oort Cloud, and her website, Cometary Tales.
Celebrity chef Katie Chin, Wok Star Catering, is an award-winning 
Faith Kramer is the author of the award-winning “52 Shabbats: Friday Night Dinners Inspired by a Global Jewish Kitchen.”
The networking ambassador for WNBA-SF, Debra Eckerling is an award-winning author and podcaster, food writer, and workshop leader. She is the author of 
After the deaths of two husbands, as well as the many family members and friends, Emily Thiroux Threatt has much experience in the grieving process and has learned to face life with love, optimism, and joy.