2022 Poets and Scholars Summer Writing Retreat
The Institute for the Study of Global Racial Justice at Rutgers University (Rutgers–Camden), with generous support from the Mellon Foundation, is pleased to announce its second annual Poets and Scholars Summer Writing Retreat - Bodies of Text: Crafting the Language of Care .
This interdisciplinary workshop is an open-genre program for creative and/or academic writers committed to antiracist writing practices. The “poets and scholars” bracket intends to welcome a broad range of scribes and thinkers from lyric poets to literary theorists. Participants will consider submitted manuscripts as occasions to reflect and explore possibilities for current and future work rather than view them as flawed objects in need of repair. Guided by a host of theoretical and ethical concerns—racial justice being chief among them—participants will discuss each other’s texts at the level of craft to develop new approaches to their own work that honor the independent selfhood of all readers, imagine equitable and inclusive futures, and gain a broad awareness of the social contexts, institutions, policies, and practices that often place these goals at odds.
Inspired by the Black Bodies, Black Health Project, another initiative sponsored by the ISGRJ that seeks pathways to equitable health outcomes, the overarching themes for this year’s retreat are medical justice, narrative medicine, anti-ableism, and the discourses of self-image and self-care. Writers are invited to apply as contributing participants or as auditors only.
To apply as a contributing participant, please submit a one-page letter of application explaining your interest in the workshop and your interpretation of its stated goals, and a manuscript of no more than 10 pages. To apply as an auditor, you need only submit a letter of application explaining your interest in the workshop. *Please note, we are no longer accepting participants at this time, but auditors are welcome to apply.
The Institute for the Study of Global Racial Justice is committed to the creation of spaces for scholars and creative writers to be in conversation as both an aspect of their work and for the mutual exchange of knowledge within and throughout the university and its surrounding communities. Workshop members will be invited to participate in the professional, social, and intellectual life of the institute throughout the academic year. Workshops and talkbacks will take place in person on the Rutgers-Camden campus. All contributing participants must attend workshops in person. Auditors may join virtually.