All Events
Resilient Love Series
An Evening with Joy Harjo, 23rd Poet Laureate of the United States
Joy Harjo
Isla Vista Theater
In 2019, Joy Harjo was appointed the 23rd United States Poet Laureate, the first Native American to hold the position and only the second person to serve three terms in the role. Harjo’s nine books of poetry include Weaving Sundown in a Scarlett Light, An American Sunrise, Conflict Resolution for Holy Beings, How We Became Human: New and Selected Poems, and She Had Some Horses. She is also the author of two memoirs, Crazy Brave and Poet Warrior, which invites us to travel along the heartaches, losses, and humble realizations of her “poet-warrior” road. She has edited several anthologies of Native American writing including When the Light of the World was Subdued, Our Songs Came Through — A Norton Anthology of Native Nations Poetry, and Living Nations, Living Words, the companion anthology to her signature poet laureate project. Her many writing awards include the 2019 Jackson Prize from the Poets & Writers, the Ruth Lilly Prize from the Poetry Foundation, the 2015 Wallace Stevens Award from the Academy of American Poets, and the William Carlos Williams Award from the Poetry Society of America. She is a chancellor of the Academy of American Poets, Board of Directors Chair of the Native Arts & Cultures Foundation, and is artist-in-residence for the Bob Dylan Center. A renowned musician, Harjo performs with her saxophone nationally and internationally; her most recent album is I Pray For My Enemies. She lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Hybrid Zoom link option available if unable to join in person: https://ucsb.zoom.us/j/
Co-sponsored by the American Indian & Indigenous Cultural Resource Center (AIICRC) and the AS Program Board.
Cup of Culture
Being Bebe
Bebe Zahara
MCC Theater
Being Bebe is the story of Marshall Ngwa, a Cameroonian artist whose identity hinges on the complicated success of his drag persona, BeBe Zahara Benet. Viewers follow Marshall’s remarkable immigrant journey from the earliest days of his amateur drag performance career in Minneapolis, circa 2006, to becoming the first winner of the now-iconic reality show RuPaul’s Drag Race in 2009. As Marshall fights to maintain the trajectory of his career despite a series of difficult setbacks, the film reveals what it means to celebrate and advance Queer Black Excellence during the 2020s. Alongside Marshall's story, viewers are introduced to LGBTQ+ youth and activists in Cameroon, where Queer identity is criminalized.
The post-film Zoom discussion with BeBe Zahara has been canceled due to scheduling conflicts.
Advocacy and Collaboration Series - Week 2
Various
Finding solutions to the issues that impact our communities can be overwhelming and longstanding, but advocacy and collaboration make pathways to change possible. Join us from May 8th to May 19th for a diverse line-up of opportunities to connect and collaborate with students, faculty, staff, and administrators to develop practices and strategies around critical issues impacting our communities. Beyond these two weeks, these conversations and collaborations toward action will continue as part of an ongoing quarterly series. We invite you to join us in this long-term commitment toward change!
WEEK TWO: MAY 15-19, 2023
Collaboration & Community Breakout Session
May 15, 2023, 3:30-5:30p, Corwin Pavilion
Hosted by MCC and CARE
The second week of the Advocacy and Collaboration Series will begin with a collaborative community breakout session to provide a space to engage with critical campus climate issues including anti-blackness, accessibility needs, housing concerns, and crisis management on campus. After attendees have the opportunity to name how these issues directly affect them and their communities, we will transition to breakout groups composed of students, staff, faculty, and administrators. Each group will develop concrete action steps on poster paper which will be shared as part of a larger discussion to conclude the evening. As one of the key events in the series that brings all members of the campus community together, the community breakout session will jumpstart the long-term advocacy work that will continue in Fall 2023. We look forward to having you join us and hearing from you.
The First Rainbow Coalition Film Screening & Discussion
May 17, 2023, 3:00-5:00p, MCC Theater
Hosted by CCAJJ, Human Rights Board, SCORE, and Office of the Student Advocate General
The First Rainbow Coalition is a 56 min documentary about the groundbreaking 1960s Chicago alliance between the Black Panthers, Young Lords, and Young Patriots. Join us for the film screening, followed by a discussion on coalition-building at UCSB. How can we organize various dividing lines to envision and create a better world? Let’s talk about it! All are welcome!
Staff Only Roundtable Debrief Space
May 17, 2023, 12:00pm-1:30pm, MCC Lounge
Hosted by MCC and Office of Student Conduct
We cannot give what we do not have! We are hardwired to look for security and comfort, so it is crucial that we be present for our undergraduate and graduate scholars, as well as for one another. As staff, we want to create a brave and safe environment for regarding campus climate, anti-blackness, and its current effects on our community.
Development of Self Through Resistance
May 18, 2023, 3:00pm - 4:30pm, MCC Lounge
Hosted by Office of Student Conduct & Restorative Justice Program
What do rest, resistance, social justice and student development have in common? Come find out! Let’s co-create a space where we learn how protests and acts of resistance not only promote social justice, but psycho-social development and personal growth.
Student Only Debrief SpacE
Thursday, May 18th, 4-6pm, El Centro
Hosted by MCC Council & JSJLS Interns
Facilitated by the Jackson Scholarship and the MCC Council, this students-only space is dedicated to providing students a mindful space to decompress, process, and plan the next steps toward their advocacy work. Regardless of how many events during Advocacy and Collaboration week that you attend, students are welcome to share in this space to discuss their experiences during this series and what action steps they will take moving forward. We hope you can join us and contribute to a robust and engaging discussion and night of making connections!
Art Exhibition
Together We Abolish: Envisioning a World Without Borders
MCC Lounge
Activist Scholar in Residence Series: MCC Art Exhibit Opening & Reception
Join us for a transformative art reception featuring zines around the abolition movement and how we can work together as a community to bring peace, love, & safety.
