KC CODE SWITCHERS
A BIPOC Poetry Experience
Join us every first Thursday for an evening of poetry, reflection, and community as we explore identity, culture, and the ways we move through the world.
KC CODE SWITCHER is a monthly gathering centering BIPOC poets and voices, featuring a different guest poet each session to guide us through discussions on self-expression, heritage, and transformation.
📅 Next Session: JULY 10TH
🌟 Featuring Sheila Maldonado
📍 ONLINE, Sign up to get link
🕠 5:15 - 7:00 PM
This year’s theme, “Culture and Migrating Through Spaces,” encourages us to think about migration beyond physical borders—considering the ways we navigate different cultural spaces, personal transitions, and evolving identities. We’ll explore how culture is not just inherited but created, redefined, and embraced in new ways.
Come connect, share, and celebrate the power of poetry in shaping our stories and communities.
BIPOC voices centered.
ABOUT Sheila
Sheila Maldonado is the author of the poetry collections that's what you get (Brooklyn Arts Press, 2021) and one-bedroom solo (Fly by Night Press / A Gathering of the Tribes, 2011). She is a CantoMundo fellow and a Creative Capital awardee as part of desveladas, a visual writing collective. She teaches English for the City University of New York. She was born in Brooklyn, raised in Coney Island, the daughter of Armando and Vilma of El Progreso, Yoro, Honduras. She lives in El Alto Manhattan.
Upcoming Sessions
August 7th - Sandra Revelle
Past Facilitators
MAY 1, 2025
Marísa Grady
Marísa Adame Grady is what you get when parents push law school but there’s a prima-hermana (cousin-sister) constantly playing showtunes. Marísa houses her original projects within her small business, Colibrósa Productions. She has three poetry books released, and two short films completed. She was a Writing Resident at Charlotte Street from 2022-2024. She has been published in Crab Fat Magazine, Mad Swirl, the Glass: Poets Resist series, and more. Learn more at www.colibrosaproductions.com.
APRIL 3, 2025
Kourtney Cunningham
Meet Taboo, aka Kourtney, who unearthed her passion for poetry in the sixth grade. However, she didn’t hit the stage until October 2021, triumphing in four local slams since her debut. Currently, Taboo has become a member of the Fountain City Poets Slam Team. Fearlessly addressing taboo topics like mental health, sexual assault, addiction, etc. Taboo sparks crucial conversations, urging audiences to confront discomfort and embrace societal truths.
JUNE 3, 2025
Mary Silwance
Mary Silwance was born in Egypt and lives in Kansas City. She works in adult education, provides workshops on writing and serves on the editorial teams of Kansas City Review and Flying Ketchup Press. Mary also explores spiritual ecology in workshops and at https://www.marysilwance.com. Mary is motivated by the belief that the imagination at play is emancipatory medicine through which we create community with ourselves, each other, and Earth.