Spoken Word Showcase with Studio12 and Sunday Practise

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This event took place on: 19 November 2020.

Hosted by the renowned literary activist, writer and playwright Khadijah Ibrahiim, this special event features poets and artists from Yorkshire. We’ll begin with a panel discussion exploring women’s voices, activism and the fight for a fairer world featuring guest poet Suhaiymah Manzoor-Khan.

This is followed by the screening of new short films featuring emerging writers from Studio12 in Leeds that Khadijah recently led mentoring sessions with. The event finishes with a performance from The Sunday Practise – a leading grassroots jam session, poets, DJs, musicians and vibes night from Leeds that represents a wide cultural perspective of women poets in the UK.

This event celebrates Unfinished Business: The Fight for Women's Rights, a UK-wide exhibition by the British Library and public libraries.

Speakers

Khadijah Ibrahiim

Literary Activist

Suhaiymah Manzoor-Khan

Educator and Poet

The Sunday Practise

Live Poetry Night

Voice in Cookery Writing: Nigella Lawson, Ella Risbridger and Bee Wilson

How do you tell the story of a recipe? A recipe is so much more than a set of instructions; it is a story, an experience waiting to happen. We explore the role of voice, narrative and storytelling in cookery books with three fantastic food writers; Nigella Lawson, Ella Risbridger and Bee Wilson. This event was livestreamed from the British Library on 8 April 2019 to public libraries across the UK.

Michael Cashman in Conversation, presented by Ian McKellen

Michael Cashman has lived many lives, all of them remarkable: as an actor; as a campaigner for gay rights; as an MEP; and as a life peer. To mark the publication of his biography, One of Them, he joined Ian McKellen in conversation about his extraordinary life. Ian McKellen is an actor and activist, who says his proudest achievement is to have been, with Michael Cashman, a founding member of Stonewall.

This event took place on 28 February 2020 in partnership with Gay's the Word. The event was livestreamed from the British Library to public libraries across the UK. Due to the nature of the conversation this event is recommended for adult viewing only.

James Baldwin's America and its Urgent Lessons for Today

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With Eddie S Glaude Jr. A searing indictment of racial injustice in America, inspired by the life and work of James Baldwin.

Eddie S. Glaude Jr of Princeton University follows the increasingly politicised journey of 'the poet of the revolution' James Baldwin, in the years from The Fire Next Time in 1963 to No Name in the Street in 1972. This was the time of the Civil Rights Movement, when attempts to force a confrontation with the truth of America's racism was answered with the murders of Medgar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr.

In his new book Begin Again: James Baldwin’s America and its Urgent Lessons for Today, Glaude suggests we can find hope and guidance for our own times, a new era of shattered promises and white retrenchment. Mixing biography with history, memoir and trenchant analysis of our moment, Begin Again bears witness to the difficult truth of race in America. It is at once a searing exploration that lays bare the tangled web of race, trauma, and memory, and a powerful interrogation of what we all must ask of ourselves in order to bring about a more just future.

Glaude will be in conversation with Rob Berkeley.

Click here to purchase <a href="https://pagesofhackney.co.uk/webshop/product/begin-again-james-baldwins-america-and-its-urgent-lessons-for-today-eddie-s-glaude-jr/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><b>Begin Again: James Baldwin's America and Its Urgent Lessons for Today<b></b></a>

Literature Matters: Young Rebels with Malorie Blackman

Former Children’s Laureate, Malorie Blackman, reflected on her writing career and how her work has been adapted into graphic fiction, plays and TV series, ahead of the release of the 2020 TV adaptation of her award-winning YA series 'Noughts and Crosses'. She was joined by 'Noughts and Crosses' scriptwriter Nathaniel Price and journalist Nicolette Jones. This event was programmed to coincide with the British Library's exhibition on rebels in children’s literature, in partnership with The Royal Society of Literature.

The Wonderful Lives of Mary Seacole and Elizabeth Anionwu

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This event took place on: 26 October 2020.

Emeritus nursing professor Elizabeth Anionwu grew up in care and went on to be named one of the most influential nurses in the history of the NHS. Her career was distinguished by her pioneering work in the understanding of sickle cell disease. Following her retirement she spent nine years fundraising and campaigning for a statue to Mary Seacole.

Mary Seacole (1805 – 1881) was a British-Jamaican entrepreneur and nurse whose adventures are related in one of the earliest autobiographies by a mixed-heritage woman. The statue, unveiled in 2016, was the UK’s first statue to represent a named black woman. Elizabeth will be discussing her and Seacole’s lives in this conversation with journalist and broadcaster Shyama Perera.

This event celebrates Unfinished Business: The Fight for Women's Rights, a UK-wide exhibition by the British Library and public libraries.