News and Events From Charis Circle |
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by Jaimee A. Swift (Executive Director of Black Women Radicals),
featured on the Black Women Radicals Blog
Jaimee Swift (JS): Why poetry? What was the catalyst that led you to become a poet?
Maya Marshall (MM): “I was a nerd, a little bookish nerd. I was raised by my mom who was an artist and an arts coordinator. I would go with her on her one-woman show around Texas where she wrote a play––a one-woman play––about Audre Lorde. She worked for the Black Arts Alliance in Austin and I would go to the office with her. One way she could keep me busy was by giving me paper to write and draw and so I sat in the corner and wrote little poems. By middle school I was in a program called Writers in the Schools (WITS) in Houston, which is where I grew up. Because my mom was a grant writer for them, I spent plenty of time in that office. I was pretty much this middle-schooler, suspender-wearing, cafe-dwelling kid. By high school, I was working in a café reading Charles Bukowski, James Baldwin, and June Jordan and because my closest friends were books and albums, it was so second nature. When I was 16, I thought I wanted to be a book person and I thought that meant I had to be a professor. When I got to college, I thought no one could really be a writer because it is too risky––it is like trying to be an actor. Then I thought I should be a high school teacher. And when I was not at the right college and without any real focus, the things that offered solace were poems and practicing writing them. So I did that all the years after college when I wasn’t sure about how to build a career around writing. And then I finally found a community here in Chicago that was built around going to live readings and hosting living room workshops. At this point, I think everyone who is in my adult life is in my life because of poetry or tangentially related to it. It has always been around, you know? When I would skip school, I sat at bookstores and read poems. I sat and read, Aloud: Voices from the Nuyorican Poets Cafe, at Bookstop off of South Shepherd in Houston because I don’t know, I was a malcontent teenager as teenagers are. I was also raised in the arts and so that always felt like home.”
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The LGBTQ+ Book Club is a group for Atlanta's LGBTQ+ folks and allies to read queer-themed books and books by queer authors! This month's book is:
Upcoming:
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184 S Candler Street, Decatur, GA 30030
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Charis Circle is now hosting a free Q/T Youth Board Game meetup at Charis Books and More! Join us to play table-top board games and have some casual social time from 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm on the second and fourth Mondays of every month. This is a free event that begins at 4:00 pm & is supported by licensed therapists, intentionally oriented to provide a safe and affirming destination for teens 12-17 years old who identify as trans, non-binary, gender-queer, or questioning.
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Kidliterate invites you to join a group of quirky adults who enjoy reading and discussing Young Adult and Middle Reader books. Drop-ins welcome! This month's book is The Genius Under the Table by Eugene Yelchin
Upcoming:
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Charis welcomes Maya Marshall in conversation with Aurielle Marie for a celebration of All the Blood Involved in Love. All the Blood Involved in Love is an urgent and evocative collection--featuring complex and compelling poems about the choices we make surrounding home, freedom, healing, partnership, and family.
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Charis welcomes Matt Armato and Beau Ciolino for a Housewarming Happy Hour! Matt and Beau will chat with fans, take photos, and sign their book, Probably This Housewarming: A Guide to Creating a Home You Adore on the front porch of Charis (184 S. Candler St. Decatur, GA 30030). (In the event of inclement weather, book signing will move inside) No reservation or ticket required. Masks are required inside the store. This event is co-hosted by the Atlanta Pride Committee.
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Join Charis Circle Executive Director, E.R. Anderson and Assistant Director, Dartricia Rollins in conversation about how we are Cultivating Queer and Feminist Community in the South at 4 PM EDT! This conversation is part of our celebration and fundraising on Give Out Day. The only national day of giving for LGBTQ+ organizations. Schedule your Give Out Day donation today so we can continue bringing you exciting Queer, Trans, and Feminist programs in the South!
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Join Crunk Feminist, Scholar, Writer, and Board Chair, Susana Morris and Community Organizer, Lawyer, and Board Member, Ruby-Beth Buitekant in conversation discussing Black Feminist Leadership and growing up at Charis at 7 PM EDT. This conversation is part of our celebration and fundraising on Give Out Day. The only national day of giving for LGBTQ+ organizations. Schedule your Give Out Day donation today so we can continue bringing you exciting Queer, Trans, and Feminist programs in the South!
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This group is designed to support the ongoing development of parents and educators of self-identified genderqueer and/or trans children, teens, or young adults, as well as children who are “gender creative,” gender non-conforming, or who express themselves in ways that society deems non-normative.
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184 S Candler Street, Decatur, GA 30030
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Charis Circle is now hosting a free Q/T Youth Board Game meetup at Charis Books and More! Join us to play table-top board games and have some casual social time from 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm on the second and fourth Mondays of every month. This is a free event that begins at 4:00 pm & is supported by licensed therapists, intentionally oriented to provide a safe and affirming destination for teens 12-17 years old who identify as trans, non-binary, gender-queer, or questioning.
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The Queer Romance Book Club is a group of adults that reads and discusses queer romance stories of all kinds. From new releases to older stories, contemporary to historical settings (with even some fantasy on occasion!), the books we'll read will also feature diverse pairings/configurations, sexualities, and gender expressions. All are welcome! This month's book is A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall
Upcoming:
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This is a group for 12-18-year-old trans*people, people questioning their own gender, and aspiring allies. We provide an adult facilitated space to discuss gender, relevant resources, and activism around social issues. Whether silently or aloud, please come ready to consider your own gender in a transient world.
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This is a group for people 18+ and is welcoming to people who are in any stage of their journey including people who are in their 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, and beyond, who are questioning their gender or just now coming out as trans in adulthood. The space is open to aspiring allies, spouses, and partners as well. We provide a facilitated space to discuss gender, relevant resources, and activism around social issues. Whether silently or aloud, please come ready to consider your own gender in a transient world.
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The LGBTQ+ Book Club is a group for Atlanta's LGBTQ+ folks and allies to read queer-themed books and books by queer authors! This month's book is:
Upcoming:
August: Mean by Myriam Gurba
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Charis presents Healing Black Generational Trauma Through Literature: A Conversation with M Shelly Conner and Adiba Nelson and Moderated by Yolanda Williams for a celebration of everyman (Conner) and Ain't That a Mother: Postpartum, Palsy, and Everything in Between (Nelson). everyman is peopled by rebellious Black women straining against the yoke of convention and designated identities, explorers announcing their determination to be and to be free. No one said motherhood would be easy. For Adiba Nelson, the journey to parenthood started with a big bang and continues with a breakdown (or two) and several why? questions for God.
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184 S Candler Street, Decatur, GA 30030
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Charis Circle is now hosting a free Q/T Youth Board Game meetup at Charis Books and More! Join us to play table-top board games and have some casual social time from 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm on the second and fourth Mondays of every month. This is a free event that begins at 4:00 pm & is supported by licensed therapists, intentionally oriented to provide a safe and affirming destination for teens 12-17 years old who identify as trans, non-binary, gender-queer, or questioning.
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Kidliterate invites you to join a group of quirky adults who enjoy reading and discussing Young Adult and Middle Reader books. Drop-ins welcome! This month's book is Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes by Chris Crutcher
Upcoming:
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The Black Feminist Book Club reads books by amazing Black women writers, centers the discussion from Black feminist perspectives, and celebrates classic and contemporary Black women authors across genres and styles. This month's book is I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem by Maryse Conde
Upcoming:
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Support the work of Charis Circle, the non-profit social justice programming arm of Charis Books & More, by rounding your next in-store purchase to the nearest dollar or adding a donation of any amount to your total. Thank you for helping fund the feminist future! |
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Code of Conduct and Accessibility
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By attending our virtual events you agree to our Code of Conduct: Our events seek to provide a harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, religion (or lack thereof), class, or technology choices. We do not tolerate harassment in any form. Sexual language and imagery are not appropriate. Anyone violating these rules will be expelled from this event and all future events at the discretion of the organizers. Please report all harassment to info@chariscircle.org immediately.
ASL Intrepretation is available upon request. We are adding closed captioning as soon as possible after airing each event so that they will be accessible to deaf and HOH people. If you have other accessibility needs or if you are someone who has skills in making digital events more accessible please don't hesitate to reach out to info@chariscircle.org.
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