In June 2025, the federal government initiated a new travel ban restricting travel from people from 19 countries.
This ban, which predominately targets countries with Black, Brown, and/or Muslim-majority populations, is designed to spread hate and fear by creating the impression that people of certain races, religions, and nationalities are more likely to cause violence and disruption than others.
Please join MWPA, SPACE, and friends as we flip the script and showcase the vibrant prose, poetry, and culture that has come out of targeted nations, such as:
Afghanistan, Chad, Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Myanmar, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Burundi, Cuba, Lao, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, and Palestine.
Featured readers & presenters:
Sarah Braunstein, Colin Cheney, Kerem Durdag, Sharif Elmusa, Gibson Fay-LeBlanc, Myronn Hardy, Zahir Janmohamed, Gary Lawless, Nicole Pomeroy, Ryan Bani Tahmaseb, Maya Williams, and more.
With:
Musician Hadithi Abdulle (oud)
$5 general admission/Limited free community ticket
Doors open at 6:30 PM/Readings begin at 7:00 PM.
Drinks, snacks, and community. Tears and laughter welcome!
”Universe, vast universe,
my heart is vaster.”
Carlos Drummond de Andrade
Fall of Freedom is an urgent call to the arts community to unite in defiance of authoritarian forces sweeping the nation. Our Democracy is under attack. Threats to free expression are rising. Dissent is being criminalized. Institutions and media have been recast as mouthpieces of propaganda.
Fall of Freedom is an open invitation to artists, creators, and communities to take part—and to celebrate the experiences, cultures, and identities that shape the fabric of our nation.
Art matters. Artists are a threat to American fascism.
