Toxic Love and Borders: An Afternoon of Poetry
Wasafiri, Centre for Contemporary Writing (Queen Mary University of London), and Fitzcarraldo Editions present an afternoon of poetry with Sophie Chauhan, Sasha Debevec-McKenney, and lisa minerva luxx.
Chaired by Rachael Allen, the three poets will read and discuss from their work and practice — writing (to) the nation, borders, race, and politics through humour, intimacy, and ‘toxic’ relationships.
When: Saturday, 27 September, 3.30-5.30pm
Where: Whitechapel Gallery, London
Tickets: £5
Sophie Chauhan is a London-based writer and researcher, born in the UK and raised in Naarm/Melbourne. She is currently working towards a PhD in Race, Ethnicity, and Postcolonial Studies at University College London. Across her creative and critical practice, she enjoys reading, writing, teaching, and learning about radical world-building and the politics of solidarity. Her first book, Curious Affinities, was published by Hajar Press in 2023.
Sasha Debevec-McKenney’s poems have appeared in The New Yorker, the New York Review of Books, and the Yale Review. She was the 2020-2021 Jay C. and Ruth Halls Poetry Fellow at the University of Wisconsin and is currently a creative writing fellow at Emory University. She lives in Decatur, Georgia.
lisa minerva luxx is a British Syrian poet, playwright, essayist, and political activist. In 2021 luxx released their poetry collection Fetch Your Mother’s Heart to critical acclaim. Their poems have been published in New England Review, The Telegraph (as ‘Poem of the Week’), Poetry London, Sukoon, wildness, Poetry Daily, and more. Both their poetry and essays have been anthologised by the likes of Penguin, Saqi Books, and Hatchette. Translations of their work have been published in Arabic, Italian, French, and German. They guest lecture at universities on postcolonial and decolonial literary analysis, the queer body politic, and revolutionary poetics. They also write about resistance methodologies for Al Jazeera, PEN Transmissions, and other outlets. In 2020, luxx founded Nehna Hon, an anti-racism community-organising group in Beirut. Before that they were co-founder of eLaa Beirut, an international organisation supporting the mental health services in Lebanon following the Beirut blast of 2020. They are now a part of the revolutionary movement, Palestine Action. luxx’s short story collection, Raising the Sun, is forthcoming with Comma Press.
Rachael Allen is the author of Kingdomland and God Complex, both published by Faber. She works as an editor at Fitzcarraldo Editions and a lecturer at Queen Mary University.