Third annual Watermelon Seeds Festival of Literature

Third annual Watermelon Seeds Festival of Literature. Internationally acclaimed and award-winning writers read in solidarity with the Palestinian people. The Festival features Batool Abu Akleen (48Kg.), Sarah Aziza (The Hollow Half), Jess Housty (Crushed Wild Mint), Sara Kishawi, Hajer Mirwali (Revolutions), Magnolia Pauker (InterViews in Performance Philosophy), Zeina Sleiman (Where the Jasmine Blooms), and Smokii Sumac (Born Sacred). A hybrid event with readings by video and an interview on site.

Following the success of the second Watermelon Seeds Festivals of Literature, the third annual Festival will take place this May. The inaugural grassroots Festival took place in May 2024, and it featured local authors reading in support of students. The third Festival seeks to foster connections between literatures from Palestine and Turtle Island, and to promote intercultural understanding. It is partly inspired by the Palestine Festival of Literature, in which international authors combine with their Palestinian counterparts for an act of cultural solidarity. The Watermelon Seeds Festival of Literature is sponsored by VIU’s Department of Creative Writing and Journalism, VIU’s Muslim Women’s Club, VIUFA’s Human Rights and International Solidarity Committee, VIUFA’s Women and Gender Equity Committee, and Windowseat Books, among others.