Presencia & Resistencia: Wasafiri 124 Launch Party
Join us at Reference Point on 5 February (7–9.30pm) as Wasafiri celebrates the launch of Wasafiri 124: Presencia y Resistencia, our landmark British Latinx issue. This special event brings together an extraordinary constellation of artists, writers, performers, and thinkers whose work embodies the vibrancy and resilience of Latinx creativity in the UK.
Throughout the evening, guests can move between live music by Liliana A Romero, dynamic dance from Baila Peru and the Comunidad Rimanakuy (with Constantina Higbee), and a vivid spread of visual art including James Clifford Kent’s artwork alongside a striking slideshow by Liliana A Romero.
The night also showcases an exciting range of literary voices: poetry from Elida Silvey, the powerful poetry–music fusion of Las Juanas, fiction from acclaimed writer Luiza Sauma, and a talk by Dr Nathalie Teitler tracing the legacy and flourishing presence of the British Latinx writing community.
Adding yet another dimension, Javier Perez Osorio will share insights into Queer Latin American artistic practices in the UK, accompanied by a series of film screenings.
Expect a rich, immersive celebration filled with sound, movement, images, and stories — a true gathering of Presencia and Resistencia. All are warmly invited to join us as we honour the range, depth, and creative power of the British Latinx community.
When: Thursday, 5 February, 2026, 7-9.30pm
Where: Reference Point, 2 Arundel Street, London
Tickets: £12 (subsidised tickets available)
This event is kindly supported by Royal Holloway, University of London.
Constantina Higbee comes from Peru and now lives in London. Her mother language is Quechua and she also speaks Spanish and English. She works with the Rimanakuy community to teach the Quechua language and Peruvian culture in London. She teaches Quechua in the classroom and dances with the Rimanakuy Quechua Community.
Las Juanas is a feminist literary collective of Latin American and Spanish women who, for the last fourteen years, have been sharing each other’s writing, running numerous workshops, and performing their work. All while addressing issues of migration, displacement, exile, women’s rights, climate change, and human rights, more broadly. They are: marijo alba sánchez (Spain), Mar Eugenia Bravo-Calderara (Chile), Mabel Encinas-Sánchez (Mexico), Denisse Vargas-Bolaños (Bolivia), and Isabel Ros López (Spain).
James Clifford Kent Born in London, James Clifford Kent is a documentary photographer whose projects range from life on NHS wards to moments of social change and cultural icons. He teaches on the postgraduate programme at the School of Advanced Study and is Honorary Research Fellow, Royal Holloway, University of London. His work has appeared in BBC News, The Guardian and The Times; exhibited at National Portrait Gallery and Royal Academy of Arts. Author of Aesthetics and the Revolutionary City (2019), he is currently working on Yuma—his first photobook.
Javier Pérez-Osorio holds a PhD in Film and Screen Studies from the University of Cambridge and is currently a Lecturer at Stirling. In 2026, he will begin a Leverhulme Early Career Fellowship at the University of Edinburgh. His research explores the intersection of film studies, queer cinema, and decolonial thought in Latin America.
Baila Perú is a London-based dance group dedicated to preserving and sharing Peruvian cultural heritage through traditional dance. They frequently collaborate with the Comunidad Rimanakuy, a cultural association that promotes Quechua language and Andean culture in the UK. Baila Perú is a leading artistic group within the UK's Latin American community and has performed at major London museums, the London New Year's Day Parade, and the Carnaval del Pueblo.
Luiza Sauma is a Brazilian-British writer. She is the author of two novels, Flesh and Bone and Water and Everything You Ever Wanted. The latter was shortlisted for the Encore Award and recommended by Florence Welch’s book club. Her writing has been broadcast on Radio 4 and published widely.
Liliana Adaluz Romero Segura, known as LILOPHILIA, is a Colombian graphic artist, printmaker, and activist based in London. Her work blends Afro-Caribbean heritage with feminist and decolonial narratives. Through print, illustration, and sound, she challenges systemic oppression and amplifies the voices of Black and marginalized communities across the diaspora.
Elida Silvey is a Mexican-American artist living in London. She is part of The Gobjaw Poetry Collective, writer for Hard of Hearing Magazine and is an assistant editor for Montez Press. She also runs her own open mic/visual showcase and crit-circle called Exteriors, hosted at Set Social.
Dr Nathalie Teitler HonFRSL has worked promoting inclusivity in British arts, primarily literature, for 30 years. Born in Buenos Aires, she has a PhD in Latin American poetry. She is an editor, mentor, and writer and was shortlisted for a Sky Arts Award in poetry (editing) in 2024.
Our winter special issue, guest co-edited by Leo Boix and Karina Lickorish Quinn, critically explores the vibrancy and creativity of the British Latin American and Latinx communities which have been unjustly marginalised — both within Britain and beyond.