Purvi Shah inspires change as an antiviolence advocate and writer. Her books are Terrain Tracks and Miracle Marks. At the 10th anniversary of 9/11, she led Together We Are New York, a community poetry project to highlight Asian American voices.

Rosamond S. King’s poetry is in the Lambda Award-winning Rock|Salt|Stone and dozens of journals and anthologies. A creative and critical writer and artist, she is inspired by her cultures, history, and a sense of play. She is creative editor of sx salon and associate professor at Brooklyn College.

Gabrielle Civil is a black feminist writer, poet, and performance artist. Her texts and translations have appeared in Small Axe, the Third Rail, Two Lines, Obsidian, and more. She is the author of Tourist Art, Swallow the Fish, and Experiments in Joy. The aim of her work is to open up space.

Christina Olivares is the author of No Map of the Earth Includes Stars, the chaplet Interrupt, and a forthcoming full-length volume. She is the recipient of two Jerome Foundation Travel and Study Grants and a LMCC Workspace Residency.

Seema Reza is the author of A Constellation of Half-Lives and When the World Breaks Open, and executive director of Community Building Art Works, a multihospital military arts program in Washington, DC.