Grab a snack and favorite beverage, turn on your computer, and sit back to enjoy a beautiful hour of BIPOC adoptee voices, community, and Palestinian solidarity.
- Date: Sunday, September 27
- Time: 3-4pm PST / 6–7pm EST
- Cost: Minimum $5
- Format: Virtual
The Zoom link will be sent a day or two before the event; closed captions will be enabled. This will NOT be recorded or distributed.
AUTHORS
KB Brookins (they/them) is a Black queer and trans writer, educator, and cultural worker from Texas. KB’s poetry collection Freedom House (2023) won the American Library Association Barbara Gittings Literature Award and the Texas Institute of Letters Award for Best First Book of Poetry. KB’s memoir Pretty (2024) won the Lambda Literary Award in Transgender Nonfiction, the Great Lakes Colleges Association New Writers Award, and the Dorothy Allison/Felice Picano Emerging Writer Award. They are currently a Black Mountain Institute Shearing Fellow at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Follow KB online at @earthtokb.
Tori Grace Nichols (they/them) is a queer, genderqueer, disabled angelic troublemaker. They are a drag artist, actor, and writer for the stage and screen. As a cultural organizer with queer liberation organization Southerners on New Ground for over a decade, their latest work includes directing and producing political ads to bring awareness to the North Carolina State Supreme Court race in November. Their drag opera entitled Squirrel of Silayville will be featured in the inaugural Durham FRINGE Festival in November.
They are adopted from the Philippines and grew up overseas on american military bases. They hold a B.S. in Music Therapy from Georgia College & State University and an MFA in Dramatic Writing from Antioch University, Los Angeles. They’ve been sent here across time and space by their ancestors to break cycles of harm via laughter, drag, film and television.
A transracial, intercountry adoptee born in Korea, Alice Stephens is the author of the novel, Famous Adopted People, as well as a book reviewer, essayist, short story writer, facilitator of the Adoptee Voices Writing Group, member of the Starlings Collective, and co-founder of the Adoptee Literary Festival. Her historical novel, The Twain: A Tale of Nagasaki, is forthcoming in February, 2027. She is currently working on a collection of autofictional short stories about her adoption.
***You can buy their books at the BIPOC Adoptees online bookshop.***
MEET THE FAMILIES
Tamara Abu Dayer and the Abu Dayer Family: The Abu Dayers are from Jabalia, a densely populated refugee camp in northern Gaza that has been destroyed. They have been displaced numerous times during the genocide, and thier large family has been separated to various locations. Over the past year, Tamara has become one of our closest dearest friends. To learn more about Tamara and life under occupation, here is a zine that Lisa MM Butler made to illustrate Tamara’s experience. Also, read Joon Ae’s essay, “A Debt of Gratitude” that connects Korean adoption to Palestine. Click HERE for her main fundraising page and consider setting up automatic monthly donations for sustained support.
Nida was a 23-year-old student - about to complete her degree in computer engineering - when her home was bombed. A home she shared with her parents and 6 younger siblings. After the bombing, Nida's father was taken hostage by the Israeli occupation and has yet to be heard from or released. Nida's mother suffers from chronic health conditions - made worse by the occupation's denial of food and medication in Gaza. Nida promised her father she would care for her siblings and she carries this burden alone. Her family relies on the support of others outside of Gaza to survive. Check out this cartoon that Lisa made to help amplify Nida’s story! Here is Nida’s main fundraiser page.
Stay tuned on our Instagram pages. This series goes all the way through the end of November! We will announce upcoming dates and authors when they are confirmed. Thank you!!!!
HOSTS
Joon Ae Haworth-Kaufka and Lisa MM Butler
Contact Joon Ae with questions at joonae@ajumamaworkshop.com