Poems of Provocation & Witness: March 22-25, 2012
CALL FOR PROPOSALS
Panel & Roundtable Discussions, Workshops, and Themed Group Readings
Deadline: JUNE 30, 2011
Thanks to all who submitted proposals!
We are the ones we have been waiting for. —June Jordan
Split This Rock invites proposals for panel and roundtable discussions, workshops, and themed group readings for our third national poetry festival, scheduled for March 22-25, 2012, in Washington, DC.
As people’s movements erupt here at home and throughout the world in response to political repression and environmental degradation, the festival will consider the relationship of poets and poetry to power and to the challenges to power. We are especially interested in proposals that address these questions.
In this vein, Split This Rock welcomes proposals that celebrate the legacy of poet-activist June Jordan, as 2012 marks the tenth anniversary of her death. Such proposals might explore — as Jordan did in her poetry, prose, and activism: the intersection of the personal and political; the overlapping experiences of race, gender, and sexuality in our society; poetic language, including the use of Black English in creative writing and education; and internationalism and the responsibility of the American poet to the struggles of the world’s oppressed peoples.
We salute Jordan’s pioneering community program at the University of California-Berkeley, Poetry for the People, and invite explorations of its continuing impact. As always, we are interested in hearing about innovative, collaborative, community-oriented poetry programs. Read more about June Jordan at www.junejordan.com.
Developing and Submitting a Proposal
- First, decide on a topic and select the format that will be most appropriate. The Application Form includes a description of the three formats.
- Next, identify (and contact) the participants. Be sure they have agreed to participate before you include their names in your proposal.
- Finally, complete the Application Form (Microsoft Word format) and send it in. The form includes full guidelines. Please don't leave out any of the details.
Email info@splitthisrock.org if you have questions as you prepare your proposal, and please don't hesitate to contact us if you need the application form in a different format.
Things to Keep in Mind
There is no limit to the number of proposals you may send, but please send only your favorite ideas. Take time to develop your proposal and bear in mind that this is a competitive process. For 2010, we had to turn away many strong proposals.
We value diversity within the panels, creative ways of interacting, ideas that are new to us. We also value history. Take a look at the schedules of the first two festivals to see what kind of discussions have taken place in the past:
Panel presenters must register for Split This Rock Poetry Festival. Registration will open later this year. Generous scholarship funds will be available; we’ll post a simple scholarship application when festival registration opens.
Please sign up for our email list or find Split This Rock on Facebook to stay up-to-date on festival announcements, ongoing programs, and opportunities to help out.