An Evening of Poetry and Conversation with Cheryl Boyce-Taylor and Randall Horton

Join us for an evening of poetry with critically acclaimed poets Cheyl Boyce-Taylor and Randall Horton in celebration of Boyce-Taylor’s newest collection We Are Not Wearing Helmet and Mama Phife Represents being awarded the 2022 Audre Lorde Award for Lesbian Poetry by The Publishing Triangle. Boyce-Taylor and Horton will be in conversation at Recirculation, a project of Word Up, and then answer questions from the audience.

This event is a $5 suggested donation ticket. Please register in advance.

In compliance with Word Up Community Safety guidelines, all attendees for this event must show proof of vaccination and must remain masked at all times. Please arrive at least 30 minutes before the event so we can check vaccination cards and ID. 

Recirculation, a project of Word Up Community Bookshop, is located at 876 Riverside Drive (near 160th St.) in Washington Heights, NYC. You can take the 1 train to 157th St., A/C train to 163rd St., and the M4 and M5 to Broadway and 159/160th.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Cheryl Boyce-Taylor is the winner of the 2022 Publishing Triangle’s Audre Lorde Award for Lesbian Poetry for her verse memoir, Mama Phife Represents, which stands as a tribute to her late son, hip hop icon Malik “Phife Dawg” Taylor of A Tribe Called Quest. Additionally, she is the author of five collections of poetry, Raw Air, Night When Moon Follows, Convincing the Body, Arrival, and We Are Not Wearing Helmets published by Northwestern University Press in February 2022. Cheryl has facilitated poetry workshops for Cave Canem, Poets & Writers, Poets House and The Caribbean Literary and Cultural Center. Her poetry has been commissioned by The Joyce Theater and the National Endowment for the Arts for Ronald K. Brown: Evidence, A Dance Company. A VONA fellow, her work has been published in Poetry, Prairie Schooner, Aloud: Voices from the Nuyorican Poets Cafe, Pluck!, Killings Journal of Arts & Letters, Adrienne and The Mom Egg Review.  The recipient of the 2015 Barnes & Noble Writers for Writers Award, she is the founder and curator of the Calypso Muse and the Glitter Pomegranate Performance Series. Cheryl earned an MFA in Poetry from Stonecoast: The University of Southern Maine, and an MSW from Fordham University. Her life papers and portfolio are stored at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.

Randall Horton is the recipient of the Gwendolyn Brooks Poetry Award, the Bea Gonzalez Poetry Award, the Great Lakes College Association New Writers Award for Creative Nonfiction, and a National Endowment of the Arts Fellowship in Literature. He is a member of the experimental performance group Heroes Are Gang Leaders which recently received the 2018 American Book Award in Oral Literature and The Baraka Sessions, was named best vocal jazz album by NPR in 2019. Randall’s collection of poetry {#289-128} is published by the University of Kentucky (2020) and received the 2021 American Book Award. His new memoir Dead Weight: A Memoir in Essays is published by Northwestern University Press (2022). He is the co-creator of Radical Reversal, a poetry/music band dedicated to challenging systemic injustice in the American legal system through the installation of recording studios and creative/performance spaces as well as programing in Department of Correction facilities in the United States. Randall is a Professor of English at the University of New Haven.

This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.

Word Up Community Safety Guidelines

• All children and adults ages 5 and older are required to have proof of vaccination for indoor events hosted by Word Up Community Bookshop. They must show proof they have received two vaccine doses, except for those who have received the one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
• People 18 and older are also required to show identification along with their proof of vaccination.
• All attendees ages 2 and older must wear a mask at all times when indoors at the store and during events at Word Up and Recirculation.

CANCELLATION POLICY: Word Up Community Bookshop reserves the right to cancel events for any reason, including but not limited to safety concerns.

CODE OF CONDUCT: Please note Word Up has a zero tolerance policy for harassment or intimidation of any kind during any event, virtual or in-person. Please read our Safe Space Policy for more information. Anyone violating these rules will be expelled from the event at the discretion of the organizers.

PHOTOS & RECORDING: Events may be recorded, and video and photos may be posted on our website, social media, and elsewhere. If you would prefer not to be visible, please let a Word Up team member know.

PRIVACY: Registrants will be added to the Word Up mailing list. Your contact information will never be shared or sold. You may unsubscribe or update your subscription at any time.

PHYSICAL ACCESSIBILITY: Recirculation is a wheelchair-accessible space with one ramp from the street level down to the store. Most of the shelves are on wheels and can be moved to provide additional access. The bathrooms are not yet ADA compliant and do not yet have a changing table but are gender neutral. The events are mic’d for sound and videos are captioned when possible. Free ASL interpretation is available for most programs upon request. Please email events@wordupbooks.com to request interpretation as early as possible. If you have specific questions about the space or how an event can be made more accessible to you, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@wordupbooks.com.