Borderlands Theater presents:
Writing Home with Yosimar Reyes
General Description:
This workshop is designed for undocumented and formerly undocumented writers to gather and create new work. Through a series of four weekly workshops writers will explore the undocumented predicament, strengthen their voice, and have a space where they can freely relate to one another as undocumented folks. Workshop sessions will be conducted virtually. Applicants from around the country are encouraged to apply.
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Dates and Times:
June 29 Workshop and Call for Applicants is announced
July 20 Deadline for submissions at 11:59pm, Monday, July 20
July 25 Participants selected
July 26 Applicants informed of selection status,
August 3-28: Workshop Sessions
Workshop sessions begin the first week of August and will run once a week for four weeks. Each session will last approximately 90 minutes. Specific days of the week and times will be decided by availability of instructor and cohort once participants have been selected.
Fee:
In order to remove any financial barriers a sliding scale fee between $0 to $40 is available. Participants are welcome to give what is affordable for them.
Criteria:
- 15 participants
- All writing levels welcome
- Must be committed to attending 4 sessions
- Must be undocumented or formerly undocumented
- Must be open to group participation
- Must be present and alert during each session
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Detailed Description of Individual Workshop Sessions.
Week 1: Migration Story
As undocumented folks we are used to recounting our stories as migrant subjects. Often, we grow so detached from the narrative and focus on hitting key points to justify our existence. What if your migration story was a love story, a hero’s journey or a creation story? This week we focus on what were the push and pull factors that brought us here as well as use our imagination to tell a new migration story.
Week 2: Us and the Empire
In documentaries and movies, we are used to seeing the hardships undocumented people face. Poverty, uncertainty and fear are elements that often consume our stories but what about the laughter? Is it possible to dream when you are poor? This week we will explore our lives within the US Empire. How do we survive? How do we create? What is the nuance of our experience?
Week 3: From Surviving to Thriving
Resilience is an ugly word. It means that you are surviving under a natural force but there is nothing natural about being hunted, about emotionally manipulated and psychologically damaged. This week we will explore the state of our mental health and how to create new language, new hopes, new grounding for the uncertainty that is around us.
Week 4: Dreaming of home
What does home mean to you? Have you ever thought about returning where you came from? This week we will explore the possibilities of returning, our fears, our anxiety but also the endless possibilities of existing in a world where you are seen as fully human.
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Facilitator Biography
Yosimar Reyes is a nationally-acclaimed Poet and Public Speaker. Born in Guerrero, Mexico, and raised in Eastside San Jose, Reyes explores the themes of migration and sexuality in his work. The Advocate named Reyes one of “13 LGBT Latinos Changing the World” and Remezcla included Reyes on their list of “10 Up And Coming Latinx Poets You Need To Know.”
His first collection of poetry, For Colored Boys Who Speak Softly… was self-published after a collaboration with the legendary Carlos Santana. His work has also been published in various online journals and books including Mariposas: An Anthology of Queer Modern Latino Poetry (Floricanto Press), Queer in Aztlán: Chicano Male Recollections of Consciousness and Coming Out (Cognella Press), and the forthcoming Joto: An Anthology of Queer Xicano & Chicano Poetry (Kórima Press). Reyes was featured in the Documentary, “2nd Verse: The Rebirth of Poetry.”
He is a LAMBDA Literary Fellow as well as the recipient of the Undocupoets Fellowship. Reyes previously served as Artist-in-Residence at the media and culture organization, Define American.