Music – Refreshments – Silent Auction
Tickets: $20.00

Special Appearance by SONIA SANCHEZ
Music by THE JONATHAN MICHEL TRIO
And Speakers just back from Haiti and Habitat for Humanity

Co-Sponsored by: The Brothers Network, The Moonstone Arts Center, Scribe Video Center, Traveling Mercies

Host Committee: Thomas Paine Cronin, Matt Feldman, Charles Fuller, Aldo Magazzeni, Louis Massiah, Marciene & Herman Mattleman, Henry Nichols, Claire Prieto-Fuller, Sandy & Larry Robin, Janet Ryder, Sonia Sanchez, Harriet Smith

Organized by The Moonstone Arts Center and Harriet Smith

All proceeds go to Habitat for Humanity. All checks should be written directly to Habitat for Humanity.

Buy your tickets here:
https://moonstoneartscenter.ticketleap.com

Copyright Eric Estenzo, Detainee 337

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 8pm – READING – $5 Suggested Donation
WARRIOR WRITERS: When They Come Home
Presented by The Warrior Writers Project
Supported by: Studio 34 *Yoga * Healing *Arts and Robin’s Books & Moonstone Arts

The Writer Warrior Project’s mission is to create a culture that articulates veterans’ experiences. We aim to provide the opportunity for a creative community for artistic expression among veterans. We provide witness to the lived experiences of warriors.
For more info contact: warriorwriters@gmail.com

You are invited to join us in remembering Don Belton, who was murdered on December 28, 2009. We invite you to share your stories to celebrate Don’s life. Please bring something to eat or drink to share as well.

Don Belton is the author of a novel, Almost Midnight, and editor of Speak My Name, an anthology exploring the gulf between real and represented black masculinity. Belton’s writings have appeared in literary reviews, literature anthologies, cultural journals, and popular magazines and newspapers. He has been a fellow at the Bread Loaf Writers Conference at Middlebury College, Macdowell and Yadoo artists colonies, the Rockefeller Center in Italy, and the Center for Media Studies at Brown University. He has taught literature, fiction and world cinema at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Macalester College and the University of Pennsylvania. He lectured on James Baldwin at the first African American Writers in Europe Conference at the Sorbonne; on black literature and black popular culture in the Ivory Coast of West Africa; and on Robert Mapplethorpe at the University of Sao Paulo, School of Communications and Arts, Brazil. His writing and teaching interests include writers in community and exile, and writing about home.

Love and Death in Indiana By Scott McLemee – January 13, 2010 – Inside Higher Education
I have been reading with sadness and horror about the murder of Don Belton, an assistant professor of English at Indiana University, whose body was found in his apartment in Bloomington on December 28. He had been stabbed repeatedly in the back and sides. A novelist and essayist, Belton had taught creative writing at a number of institutions and was the editor of Speak My Name: Black Men on Masculinity and the American Dream, a landmark anthology published by Beacon in the mid-1990s. He was also gay, which is not an incidental detail.
Around the time police were getting their bearings on the case, the girlfriend of a young ex-Marine named Michael Griffin contacted police to tell them she thought he was involved in Belton’s death. Griffin was soon taken into custody. According to a detective’s affidavit available online, he said that Belton had sexually assaulted him on Christmas. Two days later, he went to Belton’s apartment to have a “conversation” which turned into a “scuffle,” resulting in the professor’s death.
These words, which sound so mild, sit oddly in the narrative. The affidavit then goes on to say that Griffin stated “that he took a knife, called a ‘Peace Keeper’ that he had purchased prior to going to Iraq while in the Marine Corps, with him….” He also thought to bring a change of clothes. The bloody ones went into a white trash bag. Griffin “then went about and ran several errands,” the report continues, “before he eventually discarded the bloody clothing into a dumpster…. Mr. Griffin then returned home where he stated that he told his girlfriend what he had done.”

For the rest of Scott McLemee’s article see: www.insidehighered.com/views/mclemee/mclemee272

For other information on Don Belton see: justicefordonbelton.com/

14th Annual Poetry Ink:
100 Poets Reading Sunday, April 11, 2010 at 1 PM

We want you all: academic poets, famous poets, free form poets, street poets, unknown poets, spoken word poets, published poets, unpublished poets. You each get 2 minutes; that’s a full day of poetry!

We supply the coffee, you bring the desserts.

For 2010, the readings will be in reverse alphabetical order, Z to A. (We did regular order in 2009.)

List of Participating Poets for April 11, 2010 To Date Includes:

Octavia McBride Ahebee
Sojourner Ahebee
Dilruba Ahmed
Meredith Avakian
Richard Bank
Ditta Baron Hoeber
Samantha Barrow
Gregory Bem
Sarah Birl
Lili Bita
Mel Brake
Star Cummin Bright
Eugene Brown
Jose Cedillos
Liz Chang
Jim Cory
Ashini Desai
Carlos Raul Dufflar
R.G. Evans
Tina Fields
Leonard Gontarek
David Gordon
Steve Halpern
Alison Hicks
Quincy Scott Jones
Jody Kolodzey
Raina Leon
Elliot Levin
Jeff Mark
Angel Martinez
John Oliver Mason
Gabré Medhin
Joyce Meyers
Kasia Newcomer
Betty Jean Nobles
Daniel O’Hara
Herb Perkins-Frederick
Pamela Perkins-Frederick
Christopher Purdom
Don Riggs
Maria de Lourdes Rodriguez
Mary Scarpati
Adam Sorkin
Janet Spangler
Catherine Staples
Lamont Steptoe
Larry Thompson
Justin Vitiello
Shulamith Caine Wechter
Rebecca Weiss
Therese Willis
Tom Woolfolk
Dave Worrell
Robert Zaller

The Moonstone Arts Center promotes creative exchange through diverse cultural programs. Each year Moonstone produces over 200 public events including poetry, author appearances, music, theater and film at our location in Center City, Philadelphia. We also organize collaborative programs such as Thomas Paine: The Forgotten Founding Father and John Brown: 150 Years Later.

One of our most successful annual programs is Poetry Ink: 100 Poets Read, seven hours of poetry, food, and conversation with poetry lovers from around the area during Poetry Month in April. In addition to the reading, we produce a chapbook each year with one page for each reader who chooses to be included.

We believe that the arts, creativity, and imagination are essential aspects of life, learning and community. The Moonstone Arts Center is a division of Moonstone Inc., which also operates the Moonstone Preschool in South Philadelphia.

Why Join?

Moonstone supplies an inexpensive forum for emerging and established artists to gather and perform. Many of our events are free, and the others are low cost. Given the changes in the non-profit world and shrinking support from government and corporate sources, we need to reach out to you. We invite you to become part of our community, to present your work, to come and hear others, and to support us in our work. Moonstone is a 501(c)(3) not for profit organization. Contributions are tax deductible.

Thank You, Moonstone Supporters

Abraham Lincoln Foundation of the Union League
Barra Foundation
Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation
National Archives and Records Administration: Mid-Atlantic Region
Pennsylvania Abolition Society
Pennsylvania Council on the Arts (PCA) through the Pennsylvania Partners in the Arts (PPA)
Pennsylvania Humanities Council
Philadelphia Cultural Fund
Samuel S. Fels Fund
William Penn Foundation

Annual Membership Levels

Moonstone – $25

Members receive announcements of programs by email, as well as discounts on Moonstone merchandise and from area merchants such as Robin’s Book Store.

Opal – $50

Members receive all the benefits of Moonstone Level plus invitations to “members only” receptions with authors and speakers from selected events throughout the year.

Pearl – $100

Members receive all the benefits of Opal Level plus a free copy of the year’s Poetry Ink Chapbook in a classy Moonstone tote bag.

Sapphire – $250

Members receive all the benefits of Pearl Level plus inclusion in an annual writers’ workshop.

Emerald – $1000

Members receive all the benefits of Sapphire Level plus a memorable dinner with a well known author and recognition in our publications.

Ruby – $2500

Members choosing this highest level receive all the benefits of Emerald Level plus recognition in our publications, and free admission to all Moonstone programs.

All memberships extend one year from date of payment.

Download the membership form here: Membership Form, then send it to

Larry Robin
RE: Membership
110A S. 13th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19143

or drop by the store and pick up a form in person.

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 29 – SATURDAY, DECEMBER 5
JOHN BROWN – 150 YEARS LATER
A week of events celebrating John Brown 150 years after he was hung. For details please go to:
www.moonstoneartscenter.org/johnbrown/

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 23, 7pm – FICTION
PHILLY FICTION 2
Believing that there is no better backdrop for fiction than Philadelphia, Don Ron Books recently released Philly Fiction 2 (Don Ron Books, July 2009, $12), a follow-up to its highly successful Philly Fiction (Don Ron Books, 2006). The new book is a new collection of short stories all set in Philadelphia, by 19 Philly writers. Come out as four of the authors read selections from their stories, and reveal their favorite “strange” Philadelphia spots.

Beth Goldner was born and raised in King of Prussia, when Woolworth’s still sold parakeets and shotguns. Her fondest memories are of going to the Franklin Institute with her dad. She loved running through the worn-out giant heart that smelled of bacteria, urine, and candy wrappers. As a true filly from Philly, she still has her elephant key from the zoo. She is the author of Wake: Stories (Counterpoint Press, 2003) and The Number We End Up With (Counterpoint Press, 2005).

“Ambrosia” by Beth Goldner
Finding his wife dead from a fall in the bathroom, a local car salesman joins the block party instead of calling the police. He wants to see his neighbors try his wife’s ambrosia one last time and to confront the man who had been sleeping with his wife.

Jan Kargulewicz is a full-time sociology student and a resident of Roxborough. Before returning to school, Jan worked as a bartender, television salesman, math tutor, freelance journalist, and reggae musician and wrote fiction in his spare time. An amateur urban geographer, he is available for free walking tours of Center City. Jan is currently at work on his first nonfiction book.

“A Cormorant Dries its Wings” by Jan Kargulewicz
A young slacker couple spend their days acting as prospective buyers of condos when they should be out looking for jobs. When she realizes she’s pregnant it becomes even clearer just how lost and helpless they are.

Liz Kerr, a Philadelphia native, holds dual Irish and American citizenship. She is a registered nurse on the Heart Transplant Team at a Philadelphia hospital and is pursuing a master’s degree in English. She is a cofounder of Franklin’s Paine Skatepark Fund, a non-profit dedicated to building public skateboard parks in Philadelphia, and is an officer in the Ancient Order of Hibernians. She lives with her family in Jenkintown.

“The Summer of Dark Shadows” by Liz Kerr
Set during the Vietnam War, a large family leaves the city for the shore and tries to survive the tensions of having a son in the war, a rebellious daughter who often indulges in the vices she criticizes, a father who sells illegal cigarettes to help pay for everything, and a young girl who sees life through the lens of bubble gum music and the vampire soap opera Dark Shadows.

Annie Wilson came to Philly in 2004 to study dance and three-dollar hoagies. Since attending the University of the Arts, she has performed in the Fringe and Live Arts festivals, and has directed and evening-length, site-specific performance, in memory of the deathtrap.

“Hoagie” by Annie Wilson
A plumber who loves his hoagies discovers a South Philly corner deli that makes an Italian hoagie so good he has an orgasm. The hoagies take over his life, and try as he might to break his sexual fixation with this roll of meat and cheeses, it only leads him to unleash all of his life’s unhappiness.

Hosted by Josh McIlvain and Christopher Munden (editors).

HEAR WHAT THE CRITICS ARE SAYING:

“Philly Fiction 2 is as varied as the city it’s set in.” – Monica Weymouth, Metro

“This collection does a wonderful job of gathering some of the area’s finest writers to conjure a vision of Philadelphia that is both realistic and touching… The end result is a highly engaging collection that paints a moving picture of the City of Brotherly Love.” – Marc Schuster, Small Press Reviews

“What I love about all of these stories is that they could be happening to anyone, anywhere. But there is also something uniquely Philadelphia about them and the fact that their stories take place here make them that much richer.” – Autumn Konopka, Philly2Philly.com

“If you want to feel connected to your city in a nostalgic way then I suggest you pick yourself up a copy of Philly Fiction or Philly Fiction 2. Hell, pick up both editions, they’re only twelve bucks!” – Kerri Schmanek, paparazziphilly.com

“Each story represents how the people, the buildings, and the spirit of Philadelphia have aroused the creative energy in all kinds of storytellers – but the reader does not have to be familiar with the city in order to enjoy the stories in Philly Fiction 2” – John Drain, Philadelphia Stories

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 10, 7pm – NON-FICTION
Free Thought Society of Greater Philadelphia Presents
BARRY VACKER
reading from Starry Skies Moving Away (2009)

which explores how humanity’s view of utopia and destiny has evolved (and devolved) with cosmological discoveries, from Galileo to the space age to the big bang. The reading will include a most original interpretation of the long-term meaning of Apollo 8 and 11, the meaning never provided by NASA or the media. Certain to stimulate atheists and free thinkers!
Barry Vacker teaches media and cultural studies at Temple University. Most recently, Barry wrote the text for Peter Granser’s photography book about America, Signs (Hatje Cantz and the Chicago Museum for Contemporary Photography, 2008), which has been featured in museums and galleries around the world. Barry wrote and directed the documentary film, Space Times Square (2007), which has screened in New York, Paris, Hamburg, Beijing, and cyberspace. He is also founder of Theory Vortex, an experimental media firm that produced his film and the “Theory Zero” book series: Zero Conditions (2008), Crashing into Vanishing Points (2009), and Starry Skies Moving Away (2009). He is also the author of Slugging Nothing: Fighting the Future in Fight Club (2009).
www.barryvacker.net
theoryvortex.blogspot.com

WEDNESDAY AUGUST 26, 7pm – FILM AND DISCUSSION – $5
VIEW FROM A GRAIN OF SAND

The war of aggression against Afghanistan initiated by George W. Bush in October 2001 and now maintained and expanded by Obama is “NOT THE GOOD WAR“.

Philadelphia World Can’t Wait is proud to present a showing of the film “View From A Grain of Sand” and a discussion of why this war must be opposed and how it can be resisted.

Shot in refugee camps of Pakistan and the war-torn city of Kabul, three remarkable Afghan women lead us through the maze of Afghanistan’s complex history, informing this examination of how international interventions, war and the rise of political Islam have stripped Afghan women of their freedom over the last thirty years. Combining verité footage, interviews and rare archival material, this evocative film is a harrowing, thought-provoking and movingly intimate portrait of a still divided and brutalized nation. Addressing timely issues of women, Islam, and US foreign policy, the film is a compelling and vital addition to the global dialogue of our times.

“View From a Grain of Sand”
Today I had the experience of seeing one of the most moving documentaries I have ever seen, ‘View from a Grain of Sand’ which focuses on three Afghani women, telling the story of all women in Afghanistan. All I can say is that everyone should see this film, absolutely everyone. The status of women now in Afghanistan is a DIRECT result of the US and Saudi Arabia funding the mujahadin in order to drive the Soviets out. It is OUR fault the women of Afghanistan have gone through this. If our country is occupying Afhanistan, YOU need to know what has gone on there.

thehollytree.blogspot.com/2009/02/view-from-grain-of-sand.html