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Beautiful Truth: An Evening of Poetry and Conversation with National Book Award Winner Terrance Hayes

From our friends at Charlotte Lit:

Terrance Hayes

Charlotte–Charlotte’s literary arts center, Charlotte Lit, brings National Book Award winner and McArthur Foundation fellow Terrance Hayes to Charlotte. On Friday, February 1, 7:00-8:30 p.m., poet Terrance Hayes will read from his work and discuss the importance of personal narratives to share our stories and heal.

The event is part of Charlotte Lit’s ongoing Beautiful Truth initiative. It takes place at the Midwood International and Cultural Center Auditorium, 7:00 pm. Tickets are $10, with free tickets for students and anyone with financial need, available at https://www.charlottelit.org/event/terrance-hayes-reading-and-talk-beautiful-truth-initiative/.

The Beautiful Truth initiative is designed to help community members write and share stories about their personal experiences of this community, and is Charlotte Lit’s response to the racial strife and income disparity that have intensified in Charlotte over the last few years.

“Healing comes when we’re able to share our experiences, hearts, and truths with one another,” says Charlotte Lit co-founder Kathie Collins. “Healing comes when we listen. And when we’re heard.”

ABOUT BEAUTIFUL TRUTH: This initiative was created in response to the deep divides exposed during the Keith Lamont Scott protests, debates over affordable housing and high-poverty schools, and a report that placed Charlotte dead-last for upward mobility of the fifty largest US cities. Every Charlotte experience is a different story. Charlotte Lit’s founders, authors Kathie Collins and Paul Reali, asked: what would happen if we started sharing these stories with one another?

Funding and Community Partners. The Beautiful Truth initiative is funded by the North Carolina Arts Council, with additional support from The Plain Language Group, Brooke and Justin Lehmann, the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, and The Light Factory.

ABOUT CHARLOTTE LIT: Charlotte Center for Literary Arts, Inc. (“Charlotte Lit”) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2015, and located in the Midwood International and Cultural Center. Charlotte Lit’s mission is to engage and educate readers and writers, building community through the literary arts. Charlotte Lit was founded on the principle that literary arts are an essential component of a healthy arts culture. Charlotte Lit equips community members to more deeply engage with literature in all its forms—from oral storytelling to short stories, from poetry to plays, from memoir to novels—through classes, labs, creative explorations, and the 4x4CLT poetry and art poster initiative.

CONTACT:

Paul Reali, Co-Founder
Charlotte Center for Literary Arts, Inc.
1817 Central Ave. – Rm. 302
Charlotte, NC 28205
704-315-2131
admin@charlottelit.org | paul@charlottelit.org