This month: a note from Adam Luna, plus two poets from our networks you'll want to see
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A Note from Our Incoming Acting President
For almost 20 years, The Opportunity Agenda team has been at the forefront of narrative and cultural strategy to build opportunity for all. Our programs help cultural trailblazers and organizers create a more welcoming world that affirms our communities.
The far right is going all out to roll back the hard-won progress we’ve made over the last decades, by any means necessary. Violence, dismantling institutions which no longer serve them, everything is on the table.
We know the consequences if they achieve their vision of a world where white supremacy, patriarchy, or trans and homophobia are left unchallenged. Countering their assault on our communities and democracy requires both powerful strategies and long-term vision. And I know the TOA team is up to the challenge.
To achieve our mission, we’re building up narrative and cultural leaders, strengthening staff capacity, and creating new programs to support our networks to overcome white supremacist narratives.
As we look toward our future, we’re excited to confront the very real challenges ahead of us and to flex narrative and cultural power to realize an irresistible future where all people are welcomed, where creativity and innovation flourish, where our natural environment is cherished, and where all people have a voice in the decisions impacting their lives.
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Welcome to team TOA, Soha!
ICYMI: In June, we welcomed our new Vice President for Institutional Advancement, Soha Ellaithy. Hailing from Cairo, Egypt, Soha has lived, worked, and traveled to more than 25 countries. She brings both deep expertise with development and communications strategy in the humanitarian sector and an innate skill for forging powerful narrative interventions. Get to know Soha!
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Our July 2023 Calendar is Live
Our Editorial Calendar is now live, with media hooks and messaging guidance to uplift disability rights, LGBTQ+ history, and important anniversaries in the movement for Black lives and civil rights. Comic-Con International also returns to San Diego on July 20-23, creating opportunities to emphasize the #PowerofPop to shape narratives through the stories we love.
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Culture Corner: Poetry for the Soul
We’re showcasing two poets from our networks who will be performing live in July, in the Washington D.C. metro area and New York City, respectively. Give them a follow, purchase tickets to their shows or readings, and introduce yourself—tell them TOA sent ‘ya.
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Sunu Chandy's My Dear Comrades
In her debut poetry collection, Sunu Chandy (@sunuchandy) gracefully weaves her personal and professional experiences as a queer South Asian civil rights attorney. Sunu, a 2019 Communications Institute alum, led a Narrative Innovators Lab community learning session with fellows to unpack both how her experiences led her to write and the way her advocacy work informed her outreach strategy for her current book tour. Visit her website to find an upcoming reading.
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Omar Offendum's Little Syria
In his genre-bridging live performance, rapper and poet Omar Offendum (@offendum) combines hip-hop, Arabic instrumentation, and ḥakawātī oral storytelling traditions to creatively retell the underrepresented historical narrative of the Lower Manhattan neighborhood once known as Little Syria. Omar is among the Butterfly Lab fellows helping to shape our multi-phase research into pro-immigrant narratives. Buy your tickets now for this limited event.
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Image credits: Carolina Kroon, Soha Ellaithy, The Opportunity Agenda, Sunu Chandy's book includes cover art by Ragni Agarwal & her headshot by Fid Thompson., and Ridwan Adhami.
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Support The Opportunity Agenda with a contribution today.
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