We (Too) Are Philly
We (Too) Are Philly was a summer poetry festival organized by the 2018-2019 Poet Laureate of Philadelphia, Raquel Salas Rivera, and poets Ashley Davis, Kirwyn Sutherland, and Raena Shirali. It was inspired by Langston Hughes’ poem “I, Too” and featured a line-up of poets of color who have a strong commitment to fighting white supremacy and collaborating with local communities to create shared creative spaces. Poets came from all over, but each featured poet was from Philadelphia. We believed that highlighting local authors serves to raise and respect the histories of those who have built this city. Each reading also featured at least one poet that works in more than one language. This is a sanctuary city; this festival was a sanctuary space. ICE and fascism have no right to terrorize our loved ones; our authors’ works maintained that truth.
We aspired to have not just poets of color performing, but also POC audiences. Historically, there has been a racial power dynamic in which white audiences consume black and brown art. This was not that kind of festival.
It was some kinda beauty.
Listen to a sample playlist of authors featured over the course of the summer here.
Watch the entirety of "Whose Parks? Our Parks!", the WTAP finale event here.
"'I’d like folks to know that these are spaces where overt discussion, contemplation, and wrestling is taking place — with issues that confront us all,' Shirali says. 'We (Too) Are Philly feels, to me, like a hybrid between a festival and a POC conference. These are our common spaces. Come heal with us.'”
-Broad Street Review
WTAP featured at Poets.org
as the #PoetryNearYou Pick of the Week