Join 2025 Writing Freedom Fellows for a celebratory reading, with special guest Deesha Philyaw.
Housed within Haymarket Books, the Writing Freedom Fellowship aims to elevate the essential voices and contributions of writers impacted by the carceral system. About to enter its third year, the fellowship is awarded to 20 emerging and established poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers annually.
The 2025 Fellows Reading celebrates the fellowship’s second cohort and features 14 writers along with a special message from fiction writer Deesha Philyaw, who served on the 2025 selection committee. Read more about the 2025 Writing Freedom fellows at https://writing-freedom.org/fellows/2025 and follow their work.
Speakers:
B BATCHELOR
"Not Yet Named" and "What the Body Holds"
JEREMIAH BOURGEOIS
Excerpt from “The Tribulations of Miller’s Children: How Cruel and Unusual Punishments Produced Establishment Clause Violations” (published in American Journal of Criminal Law)
DANTE CLARK
"Back at Waffle House for the First Time in a Long Time"
https://danteclark.nyc | https://www.instagram.com/brotherdante
AJANAÉ DAWKINS
"Relational Intimacy"
https://www.instagram.com/moonsatdusk | https://www.tiktok.com/@moonsatdusk | https://bsky.app/profile/moonsatdusk.bsky.social
EMILE SUOTONYE DEWEAVER
Excerpt from Ghost in the Criminal Justice Machine: Reform, White Supremacy, and an Abolitionist Future (The New Press)
https://www.reframeconsults.com | https://www.instagram.com/emilesuotonyedeweaver
MICHAEL FISCHER
"Photo Negative” (published in Massachusetts Review)
https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-fischer-uofc
ELIZABETH HAWES
"Eight Tenets (Tenet One)" (published in The Sun)
FAYLITA HICKS
Excerpt from "Armageddon"
https://www.faylitahicks.com | https://www.instagram.com/faylitahicks | https://www.facebook.com/faylitahicks | https://www.tiktok.com/@faylitahicks | https://www.youtube.com/c/FaylitaHicks
NICOLE SHAWAN JUNIOR
"Keepers"
https://www.instagram.com/NicoleShawanJunior
MONTERICA SADÉ NEIL
"black cat scratching at the door"
https://www.instagram.com/blackstaryouare
MEHMET ÖMER
"untitled" // "3 dec THE RENUNCIATE & THE ADDICT" // "another one for toska"
https://www.instagram.com/aselfmadeofeveryone
GENEVA PHILLIPS
"I Am Waiting" and "Terminus"
JULIE POOLE
"Untitled"
https://www.juliepoolejp.com | https://www.instagram.com/julie__poole | https://bsky.app/profile/juliepoole.bsky.social
CARLA J. SIMMONS
Chapter 3 of memoir in progress
Full bios available here: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/events/788-writing-freedom-2025-fellows-reading
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This event is sponsored by Haymarket Books. While all of our events are freely available, we ask that those who are able make a solidarity donation in support of our important publishing and programming work.
