February happenings 💌
My sister made a documentary! + a new reading event series 📚
“Every morning brings us news from across the globe, yet we are poor in noteworthy stories.” - Byung-Chul Han, The Crisis of Narration.
Happy Black History Month!
I am in community with many people who are at risk of unfairly being deported. To say I’m angry today is an understatement, but I find that rage is only helpful when channeled into a force for good. At home and in my group chats, conversations are happening. I am furious but I refuse to give into idleness. Mutual aid links are circulating; small actions are being taken; we’re reading and reflecting on how to fight this moment. It’s something—anything helps. Just ask the people in Minnesota.
The protests and organizing efforts in Minneapolis will go down in history as one of the greatest displays of collective resistance in the U.S. since 2020. From the businesses that have transformed into shelters and donation centers overnight to the networks of neighbors taking shifts to report that agency’s presence in their neighborhoods, this is hope. We are drowning in gloomy headlines, but these stories are light. As the saying goes, “Darkness cannot drive away darkness. Only light can do that.”
I’m leaning into stories and community to cultivate hope and sustain collective action in this moment. I took a break from hosting events last year to come back more intentionally in 2026, and we are so back!
A special documentary premiere
My sister Christy has been working on a personal project since last spring, a documentary that is like “a virtual hug to the 350,000 Haitian immigrants across the country who are currently bracing for deportations,” she says.
“We’re Here” will premiere tomorrow, Monday, February 2nd, in East Village. I have 10 tickets to offer to paid subscribers who are interested.
I wrote her film blurb:
“We’re Here” follows a group of Haitian immigrants who grapple with uncertainty as the Trump administration announces the end of their 15-year Temporary Protected Status in the United States.
The film documents a diversity of perspectives, from working-class families to educated professionals, challenging immigrant stereotypes and capturing their reality as it’s being altered. Urgent, illuminating and heartwarming, this intimate documentary is an ode to immigrants around the world, whose sense of home is always under threat.
Doors open at 7 PM and the screening will start at 7:30. I will be interviewing Chris about the film afterwards. If you’d like to attend, just reply to this email.
A monthly reading series
This month, I am kicking off Story Time: Reading the Greats, a monthly series where I’ll sit down with a fellow reader to hear and discuss one of their favorite stories.
On Sunday, February 15, Nneka Julia will join me to read Peach Cobbler, a short story featured in the book The Secret Lives of Church Ladies by Deesha Philyaw. “It explores the performance of piety in Black girlhood, food as language, and how we stop generational cycles of behavior,” she told me. “I interviewed Deesha a few years ago about the piece, and it’s only gotten better with time.”
After the reading, we will further explore the text with guiding questions. Nneka is a brilliant storyteller and I can’t wait to experience her mind.
I owe the event idea to the fantastic New Yorker fiction podcast. Listen to the episodes where Edwige Danticat reads Zadie Smith and Junot Díaz reads Edwige Danticat.
I hope you will join our inaugural event in two weeks.
RSVP here 💌
Coming up next: Why They Bought It: Telfar’s ‘Bushwick Birkin.’
Until next time,
Shelcy
cant wait!!