The Asmara Addis Literary Festival (In Exile) is set for Brussels, Belgium on February 9, 2019. The festival is a creation of Eritrean novelist Sulaiman Addonia.
Sulaiman Addonia, a novelist who fled Eritrea as a child refugee, made a splash with debut novel The Consequences of Love which was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize and translated into more than 20 languages. His newest novel published by Indigo Press is Silence is My Mother Tongue and we really enjoyed it.
Addonia who lives in Brussels, Belgium announced on Twitter about a new literary festival featuring African writers and other literary players from Eritrea, Ethiopia and the rest of the continent. The festival he calls “a love letter to his parent’s countries” is supported by the African department at Bozar Brussels & the Commune of Ixelles, in collaboration with the Afropolitan festival, Bozar. It will be a one-day extravaganza starting and ending on Saturday, February 9, 2019, in the author’s European home city.
Some of those who will feature at this festival are Maaza Mengiste, Minna Salami, Nadifa Mohamed, Chike Frankie Edozien, Saleh Addonia, Soheila Mehri, Ellah Wakatama Allfrey, Amina Jama, Meron Estefanos, Hazel Thomas, Vanessa Tsehaye, Desta Haile, Ubah Cristina Ali Farah, and Rachida Lamrabet.
The thread explaining announcing the festival, its guest and events goes like this;
Hello, I’m starting a new literary festival. It’s my love letter to my parents’ countries🇪🇷🇪🇹, as well as to the entirety of Africa. I proudly present:
The Asmara-Addis Literary Festival (In Exile), 9th February, @BOZARbrussels
[Logo design by Saleh Addonia] pic.twitter.com/oncmTYrGom
— Sulaiman Addonia (@sulaimanaddonia) January 8, 2019
The festival is a pan-African literary event with feminist principles at its heart. Supported by the African department at @BOZARbrussels & the Commune of Ixelles, it will debut on Sat 9 February 2019, in Brussels, in collaboration with the Afropolitan festival, Bozar
— Sulaiman Addonia (@sulaimanaddonia) January 8, 2019
The 1st edition of the festival will consist of 2 events. The 1st event, THE SHAPES OF LOVE, will bring together writers, poets & activists that show resistance through love, literature, & the act of creating beauty. It will also demonstrate solidarity with imprisoned writers &
— Sulaiman Addonia (@sulaimanaddonia) January 8, 2019
journalists in Eritrea & the LGBTQI community who are facing discriminatory policies adopted by many African governments. The event will explore, through a panel discussion & a read-a-thon of writers, the politics of love/desire & the migrant & refugee experience in Europe
— Sulaiman Addonia (@sulaimanaddonia) January 8, 2019
With Chike Frankie Edozien @FrankieEdozien, Meron Estefanos, @meronina, Hazel Thomas @HazelThomasProd, Vanessa Tsehaye @vanessatsehaye, Desta Haile @destahaile, Ubah Cristina Ali Farah, madeleine kennedy-macfoy, Astrid Haerens, Saleh Addonia, Soheila Mehri.
— Sulaiman Addonia (@sulaimanaddonia) January 8, 2019
The 2nd event, I CREATE, will celebrate five African feminists from five corners of Africa who are reshaping literature at home & abroad. It will showcase how these women are moving forward the literary world of Africa and beyond with bold, innovative ideas
— Sulaiman Addonia (@sulaimanaddonia) January 8, 2019
With Ellah Wakatama Allfrey @epwa66, Maaza Mengiste @MaazaMengiste, Minna Salami @MsAfropolitan, Nadifa Mohamed @thesailorsgirl, Amina Jama @_aminajama, and Rachida Lamrabet
— Sulaiman Addonia (@sulaimanaddonia) January 8, 2019
I want to thank all the speakers who are joining us. Thanks to Afropolitan team at @BOZARbrussels & #Ixelles commune, Brussels. My gratitude to @lemnsissay & @HannahPool for their encouragement & support. Also thanks to Saleh Addonia, @ashtonfaye1 @LiesCraeynest @tammyscribbler
— Sulaiman Addonia (@sulaimanaddonia) January 8, 2019
Further info on timings and registration will be uploaded here:https://t.co/HDjmNtE2TI
Thank you for supporting & sharing
Join us in Brussels on Saturday 9th Feb 2019 for a day on African feminism, free love & radical ideas with these fabulous speakers 👇🏾 pic.twitter.com/62gZbBklVF
— Sulaiman Addonia (@sulaimanaddonia) January 8, 2019
If you are in Brussels on February 9, we recommend that you check out this event.
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