Press Release | 14/09/2011

Auckland Poets Get on Board with the Largest Poetry Event in History

Are You In?

600 events in 450 cities and 95 countries will take place on September 24 to promote environmental, social, and political change. Poetry demonstrations are being organized in political hotspots such as Cairo, Egypt. A poetry and peace gathering is planned in strife-torn Kabul and Jalalabad. In Mexico there are over 30 events. To date there are over 250 events in the United States. More examples of events can be found at the 100 Thousand Poets for Change website at www.100TPC.org.

In New Zealand there are two events – both in Auckland. You & The Guerrilla Poets sees the Guerrilla Poets and The Literatti banding together to bring poetry to the central city streets with a poetry march that follows the footsteps of the 1969 demonstration that saw thousands of hippies take over Albert Park as a space for the people.

Everyone is invited to join the poets at midday at Meyers Park. Armed with chalk, poetry banners and their voices they’ll process along Queen Street, up Wellesley Street and into Albert Park, chalking, performing and handing out their poetic messages of change as they go. The event finishes up with a soap-box reading in Albert Park and an attempt to completely fill in the area around the fountain with poetry. Chalk is provided and it’s free to take part, people need only bring their outside voices or a spare hand to write with and something to say. Musicians and visual artists welcome.

The Guerrilla Poets have been hitting the streets of Auckland to chalk moments of inspiration for unsuspecting passers-by since 2006 when Miriam Barr, Renee Liang and Christian Jensen met at Poetry Live and started organising group missions. When Barr received the 100 Thousand Poets for Change call out for public events, she says “A special guerrilla mission made perfect sense, this project has always been quite literally about bringing poetry to the street.” The Literatti’s involvement also fitted perfectly, their current project reTHiNK Possible Worlds, seeks to reduce the stigma and discrimination associated with mental 'illness', so that is one theme passers-by can expect to see transforming the cityscape on the 24th - though participants are encouraged to share whatever message they wish. Their last mission saw the Henry Atkinson statue and an entire block in Titirangi filled in during the night. For You & The Guerrilla Poets they are coming out in broad daylight in a true celebration of poetry, change, and the spirit of ‘What If…?’

For those looking for something a bit more traditional, Printable Reality is hosting a free poetry reading at Pah Homestead, which kicks off at 2 pm with some of the city's best including the hilarious Brad McCormick (2011 Going West Slam Champion) and the esteemed Murray Edmond.

Immediately following September 24th all documentation on the 100TPC.org website will be preserved by Stanford University in California, which has recognized 100 Thousand Poets for Change as an historical event, the largest poetry reading in history. The Guerrilla Poets will be uploading photos immediately following the event so our local messages of change will go down in history.

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