Write Now! SF Bay presents twenty-two established San Francisco Bay Area writers and artists who trace their journeys as creative activists from a BIPOC (Black, Brown, Indigenous, or People of Color) perspective. The depth of their insight arises from the legacies and challenges of their roots in Native America, Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Muslim world. Their lived experience as creative changemakers brings authenticity and humanity to today’s pressing issues—from the pandemic to racism, immigration, social justice, gender, LGBTQ issues, healing, and community building. As healers, educators, culture bearers, and advocates, they write not just for themselves but to inspire others to help build a just and compassionate society.

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UNCOMMON GROUND: BIPOC Journeys to Creative Activism, Edited by Shizue Seigel

Poetry, prose and visual art by Bay Area writers and artists of color tracing the life experiences that led them to creativity and activism. Many of us are deeply familiar with adversity and change. Our families have been tested by war, poverty, and discrimination for generations. Our DNA is suffused with profound lessons on how to cope with challenging times. And our writing is linked with daily activism in large and small ways.

CONTRIBUTORS:

Faith Adiele - Nigerian/Nordic/American writer and educator

Salma Arastu - Indian American Muslim artist and poet

Adrian Arias - Peruvian American artist, performer and poet

Avotcja - Puerto Rican American poet, musician and radio DJ

Lorraine Bonner - African American sculptor and poet

Karla Brundage - Mixed-race/African American poet, essayist, and educator

Charles Dixon - pioneering African American MBA and community activist

Rafael Jesús González - Chicano Poet Laureate of Berkeley

Mark Harris -  African American visual artist

C. K. Itamura - Japanese American interdisciplinary artist

Tehmina Khan - Indian American Muslim poet and educator

Tureeda Mikell - African American poet, storyteller and educator

Josué Rojas - Salvadoran American visual artist and community activist

Wanda Sabir - African American writer, podcaster, trauma healer, teacher and activist

Shizue Seigel - Japanese American writer, visual artist and organizer

Sriram Shamasunder, MD - South Indian American poet/health equity activist

Kim Shuck - Tsalagi/White Poet Laureate Emerita of San Francisco

Kimi Sugioka - Japanese American/White Poet Laureate of Alameda

Elizabeth Travelslight, Filipina/White educator and visual artist

Twin Walls Mural Company - muralists Elaine Chu (Chinese American) and Marina Perez-Wong - (Chicana/Chinese American/Indigenous)

André Le Mont Wilson - African American poet, writer and disabilities ally