Join visiting writer and editor Elias Jahshan to celebrate the launch of This Queer Arab Family.
It’s a night of words, dance, drag and music featuring:
ELIAS JAHSHAN (words)
ANOUSH ELLAH (drag)
FATIMA (dance)
NIKOTINE (music)
ZANE BANYAN (music)
ZEID AL-NASR (words)
with a special virtual messsage from SALAH BACHIR
This is a celebration of the new book This Queer Arab Family, which itself is a celebratory book that explores how queer Arab communities reimagine family beyond traditional expectations. Edited and compiled by Elias Jahshan, the book features ten queer writers, such as Zeid Al-Nasr, from across the Arab world and diaspora, with stories that honour chosen kinship, everyday acts of care and the creativity and resilience that sustain queer Arab communities. In many Arab cultures, family roles are tightly defined, often prioritising unity over individual desire. This Queer Arab Family questions what happens when queer Arabs challenge those norms and build a family on their own terms. Fierce, vibrant and unapologetic, This Queer Arab Family celebrates community, survival and joy against all odds.
Presented in partnership by Glad Day Lit and MEEM Toronto.
This is a Pay-What-You-Can event and 100% of all proceeds will be shared among the local artists for their performances. No one turned away due to lack of funds.
Everyone with love in their hearts is welcome to attend this event.
7:15pm - Doors
7:45pm - Event Begins
There will be a mix of performances and readings, with a conversation between Elias and Zeid and time for a Q&A.