Read on to learn about how the Chicago Poetry Center celebrated National Poetry Month this year!
Poems for the Get-Through: Poem-A-Day Fundraiser
April was a month of inspiration and connection—delivered directly to everyone’s inboxes. 📩
Inspired by Andrea Gibson’s “Angels Of The Get-Through,” the board of the Chicago Poetry Center was excited to kick off National Poetry Month by bringing back Poems for the Get-Through: Poem-A-Day Fundraiser for a second year.
Each day during the month of April, subscribers received a poem and letter curated by a member of the Chicago Poetry Center board, with a different theme each week. This year, the board draws inspiration from “Paul Robeson” by Gwendolyn Brooks.
Poets for Chicago: A Night of Art & Community Benefiting ICIRR
On April 3, we partnered with Lit for Chicago to host Poets for Chicago: A Night of Art & Community. The night featured readings by José Olivarez, Mayda del Valle, C. Russell Price, Juan Martinez, and The Borderless Poets, benefitting the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.
The event was a massive success, raising nearly $4,000 to support refugee and immigrant communities in Illinois!
Celebrating Mina Khan’s Night Shift in Perfect English
On April 4, the Chicago Poetry Center and Haymarket House celebrated the release of Mina Khan’s debut collection, Night Shift in Perfect English.
The event included readings by special guests Jesse Fairbanks, Francesca Kritikos, and Natasha Mijares.
Winner of the 2024 Two Languages Book Award, Mina Khan’s Night Shift in Perfect English is a tender, album-like retelling of the immigrant family post-American Dream. Drawing upon her Korean-Pakistani heritage, Khan discusses the NYC bodega in a gentrifying neighborhood, the aging body, and a rapidly deteriorating climate.
Night Shift in Perfect English is available for purchase here!
New Visions:
A Broadside Exhibition
On April 15, we unveiled new limited-edition broadsides in our exhibition titled New Visions.
The night was spent celebrating limited-edition broadsides designed and printed by local artist Ben Blount, featuring poetry by George Abraham, Nadia Alexis, Cathy Linh Che, Jalen Eutsey, Keetje Kuipers, Maya Marshall, Soham Patel, Monica Rico, and Jimin Seo.
After the exhibition, attendees were encouraged to join us with Diego Báez and Samyak Shertok for April’s Blue Hour open mic and featured readings.
This project was made possible by a Creative Projects grant from the Illinois Arts Council.
📸 Joshua Tatro
P.S. If you weren’t able to attend, don’t worry! We’ll have the broadsides available on our online store soon. 👀
Chicago Public Library: 27th Annual Poetry Fest
On April 15 and 25, CPC Poet in Residence Musu Bangura partnered with the Chicago Public Library for the 27th Annual Poetry Fest. Hosting two workshops, Musu brought thoughtful discussion and creative experimentation to the wider Chicago community.
