The third in a series of informal Zoom conversations about how artists and arts administrators are learning to grapple with public art, social practice, and performance in the context of digital space and real-life limitations. Featuring NWFF Executive Director Vivian Hua in conversation with writers and poets Ebo Barton, Georgia McDade, and Rajnii Eddins!

ABOUT THE PANELISTS

GEORGIA STEWART MCDADE
Georgia Stewart McDade loves reading and writing. As a charter member of the African-American Writers’ Alliance, she began reading her stories in public in 1991. She credits the group with making her write poetry. For a number of years she has written poems inspired by artists at such sites as Gallery 110, Columbia City Gallery, and Onyx Fine Arts Collective. Georgia wrote for Pacific Newspapers, especially the South District Journal, and reported for community radio station KBCS (91.3 FM). She now writes for South Seattle Emerald and Leschinews and occasionally hosts Hearts and Soul and South End Stories on KVRU (105.7). Her first volume of poetry, Outside the Cave, was followed by Outside the Cave II, III, and IV. She hopes soon to publish her doctoral dissertation and the journals she kept on her six-month, solo trip around the world. Now available is McDade’s first collection of prose, Observation and Revelations: Stories, Sketches, and Essays.

EBO BARTON
Black and Filipino, Transgender and Non-Binary, poet and educator. Currently residing in Seattle, Washington by way of Los Angeles, California. As a representative of Seattle, they’ve been on 4 National Slam Teams and participated at 3 Individual World Poetry Slams. Their most notable poetry slam accolade is placing 5th in the world in 2016. Ebo curated and directed, How to Love THIS Queer Body of Color: An Unapology and wrote and directed the award-winningplay, Rising Up. They are a cast member of Anastacia Renee’s Queer. Mama. Crossroads. You may have seen Ebo’s work in Adrienne: A Poetry Journal by Sibling Rivalry Press, Thriving While Trans: A Love Manual, Natasha Marin’s Black Imagination, the King County Metro, SlamFind, Write About Now, Button Poetry and All Def Poetry. They and their work have been featured in Seattle Weekly, Seattle Gay News, Seattle Review of Books, and Crosscut. Their work touches on political issues from a personal point of view and often is birthed from the struggles of living in the identities that they are. Ebo believes in the power of language and art as a tool for revolution.

RAJNII EDDINS
Originally from Seattle Washington, Spoken Word Poet/ Emcee and Teaching Artist Rajnii Eddins has been engaging diverse community audiences for over 27 years. He was the youngest member of the Afrikan American Writers Alliance at age 11 and has been actively sharing with youth and community in Vermont since 2010. His latest work Their Names Are Mine aims to confront white supremacy while emphasizing the need to affirm our mutual humanity.