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Angel Nafis

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Angel Nafis
Nafis in 2014
Nafis in 2014
BornDecember 1988 (age 35)
Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S.
OccupationPoet and spoken-word artist
LanguageEnglish
EducationHunter College (BA), Warren Wilson College (MFA candidate)
GenreSpoken-word poetry
Notable worksBlackGirl Mansion
Notable awards
  • Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship from the Poetry Foundation (2016)
  • NEA Creative Writing fellowship
PartnerShira Erlichman

Angel Nafis (born December 1988)[1] is an American poet and spoken-word artist. She is the author of BlackGirl Mansion (Red Beard Press / New School Poetics, 2012).[2] She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Early life

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Nafis grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan,[3] where she attended Huron High School.[4] She struggled through school, but graduated in 2006.[5][4] She was on the Ann Arbor Youth Poetry Slam Team in 2005 and 2006.[4]

She was raised Muslim.[6] Her mother died when she was young, so she was raised by her father.[5] Her father's family was from New York and Georgia.[7] Her mother's family was from Chicago and Mississippi.[7]

Education

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Nafis earned her BA degree at Hunter College, and is an MFA candidate in poetry at Warren Wilson College.[2][8]

Career

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Greenlight Bookstore in Brooklyn

Nafis is a Cave Canem fellow, the recipient of a Millay Colony residency, and the founder and curator of the Greenlight Bookstore Poetry Salon's readings and writing workshops.[2][9]

With poet Morgan Parker, she runs The Other Black Girl Collective, a Black feminist poetry duo that tours internationally.[2][8]

Her work has appeared in outlets including the BreakBeat Poets Anthology, Buzzfeed Reader, the Rumpus, Poetry, Found Magazine's Requiem for a Paper Bag, Decibels, The Rattling Wall, Union Station Magazine, The Bear River Review, MUZZLE Magazine, Prelude Mag, Sixth Finch, and Mosaic Magazine.[8][10][11][12][13]

Personal life

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Nafis lives in Brooklyn[14] with artist, writer, and musician Shira Erlichman, with whom she is in a relationship.[2][15] Together, they toured for the "Odes for You" tour.[16][17][18][19][20]

In June 2020, Nafis and hundreds of other poets signed an open letter to the Poetry Foundation asking for the immediate resignation of both president Henry Bienen and board of trustees chair Willard Bunn III, as well as other demands relating to the foundation's response to the murder of George Floyd.[21]

Awards and honors

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Bibliography

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Books

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  • BlackGirl Mansion (Red Beard Press/ New School Poetics, 2012).[2]

Selected list of published poems

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This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.
Title Year Publication/anthology Reprinted/collected
"Love on Flatbush Avenue" 2018 Black Girl Magic (The BreakBeat Poets Vol. 2), Haymarket Books, 1st ed. 119.
"Ghazal for Becoming Your Own Country" 2016 Poetry Foundation[23] Black Girl Magic (The BreakBeat Poets Vol. 2), Haymarket Books, 1st ed. 194.
"When I Realize I’m Wearing My Girlfriend’s Ex-Girlfriend’s Panties" brooklynpoets.org[8]
"Woo Woo Roll Deep" 2017 BuzzFeed News[24]
"Angel Nafis" Poetry Foundation[25]
"Omen to Get Your Ass Up" 2017 them.us[26]
"Ode to Shea Butter" Prelude Mag[27]
"Ode to Lois" Prelude Mag[12]
"Ode to Voicemail" 2015 Sixth Finch[28]
"Why R&B First Thing In The Morning, Why R&B Above All" 2015 The Rumpus[29]
"Angel's Heart Clowns the Ocean" Muzzle Magazine[30] Performed at the Bowery Poetry Club in 2011 Archived 2020-06-26 at the Wayback Machine
"King of Kreations" 2018 poetry.org[31]
"Angel's Heart Reasons with Her Dad" Muzzle Magazine[32]
"I Know I’m Pretty Cuz The Boys Tell Me So" 2007 The Bear River Review[33]
"Directions to Finding You" 2009 Requiem For a Paper Bag Anthology[33]
"Tarbaby Fly" 2012 The Rattling Wall[33]
"Open" 2012 The Rattling Wall[33]
"Ghazal for My Sister" 2013 Mosaic Magazine[33] The BreakBeat Poets Anthology (Haymarket Books, 2015)[33]
"Betty Boop" 2013 Mosaic Magazine[33]
"Legend" 2015 The BreakBeat Poets Anthology (Haymarket Books, 2015)[33]
"Gravity" 2015 The BreakBeat Poets Anthology (Haymarket Books, 2015)[33]
"Conspiracy" 2015 The BreakBeat Poets Anthology (Haymarket Books, 2015)[33]

References

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  1. ^ ""So if I am a tender writer... then my poems should be everything that I am." An interview with Angel Nafis". Catapult. October 23, 2018. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "Angel Nafis". Poetry Foundation. June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  3. ^ Storey, Kate (April 26, 2013). "Tales from the 20s". New York Post. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  4. ^ a b c Mathis, Jo (September 8, 2016). "Huron graduate Angel Nafis wins national poetry fellowship". AAPS District News. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  5. ^ a b Kass, Jeff. "Why I teach creative writing". AnnArbor.com. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  6. ^ Susi, Danielle (March 30, 2016). "Dinnerview: Angel Nafis". entropymag.org. Archived from the original on September 26, 2020. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  7. ^ a b "The Conversation: Angel Nafis, Safia Elhillo, and Elizabeth Acevedo". The Rumpus.net. March 30, 2016. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  8. ^ a b c d e "Angel Nafis". Brooklyn Poets. July 19, 2018. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  9. ^ Young, Yolanda (April 23, 2019). "These Queer Poets Expand on Black Life Through Their Work". The Root. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  10. ^ "Angel Nafis". Heels on Wheels. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  11. ^ "People | Angel Nafis | The Heyman Center for the Humanities at Columbia University". heymancenter.org. Archived from the original on June 23, 2020. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  12. ^ a b Nafis, Angel. "Ode to Lois". Prelude. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  13. ^ "Sixth Finch - Fall 2015 - Angel Nafis - ODE TO VOICEMAIL". sixthfinch.com. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  14. ^ Coates, Tyler (September 27, 2016). "30 Under 30: Angel Nafis". Brooklyn Magazine. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  15. ^ Ogunseitan, Coryna (March 3, 2017). "#relationshipgoals". yaledailynews.com. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  16. ^ "Eight Black LGBTQ Poets to Give Your Flowers To Right Now". Autostraddle. February 19, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  17. ^ "The Odes for You tour featuring Shira Erlichman & Angel Nafis". Women & Children First. January 9, 2017. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  18. ^ "Wisconsin Book Festival". Wisconsin Book Festival. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  19. ^ "Poetry at Literati: Angel Nafis and Shira Erlichman | Literati Bookstore". www.literatibookstore.com. January 5, 2017. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  20. ^ "Odes for You Tour Co-Sponsored by Poetry Center of Chicago". The Chicago Poetry Center. February 5, 2017. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  21. ^ Maher, John (June 8, 2020). "Poets Call for Change at Poetry Foundation". www.publishersweekly.com. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  22. ^ "2016 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship Winners Announced - Gay Lesbian Bi Trans News Archive". Windy City Times. September 2016. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  23. ^ Nafis, Angel (June 22, 2020). "Ghazal for Becoming Your Own Country". Poetry Magazine. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  24. ^ "Poem: "Woo Woo Roll Deep"". BuzzFeed News. October 23, 2017. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  25. ^ "Angel Nafis by Angel Nafis". Poetry Magazine. June 22, 2020. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  26. ^ Nafis, Angel (December 24, 2017). "A Poem for Your Tired Queer Ass". them. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  27. ^ "Ode to Shea Butter". Prelude. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  28. ^ "Sixth Finch - Fall 2015 - Angel Nafis - ODE TO VOICEMAIL". sixthfinch.com. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  29. ^ "National Poetry Month Day 31: "Why R&B First Thing In The Morning, Why R&B Above All" by Angel Nafis". The Rumpus.net. May 1, 2015. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  30. ^ "Angel Nafis1". Muzzle Magazin. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  31. ^ "King of Kreations by Angel Nafis". poets.org. Academy of American Poets. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  32. ^ "Angel Nafis2". Muzzle Magazine. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  33. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Publications / Press". Angel Nafis. Archived from the original on June 26, 2020. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
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