What a Pair!

Starring Canisia Lubrin & Tanya Talaga

SUNDAY, OCT 20 @ 1PM $25
DJD Dance Centre
111 12 Ave SE

Sometimes our twosomes pair themselves, as happened when, after reading just one of the stellar reviews of Canisia Lubrin’s novel Code Noir, Tanya Talaga (The Knowing) tweeted she couldn’t wait to read it. We can’t wait to sit in on what promises to be an unforgettable conversation between these two forthright, fierce women who are repositioning not just their respective genres, but our future as Canadians.

Maaza Mengiste calls Code Noir “a revelation. Proof that it is possible for an imagination to outpace the rest of us, and beckon from a future far richer and more brilliant than we know.” And we’ve been working to bring Talaga to Calgary ever since she blew away our colonial blinkers with Seven Fallen Feathers. Deeply personal and meticulously researched, The Knowing retells the history of this country through an Indigenous lens, beginning with the life of Talaga’s great-great grandmother Annie Carpenter and her family as they experienced decades of government- and Church-sanctioned enfranchisement and genocide. It’s a seminal unravelling of the centuries-long oppression of Indigenous Peoples that continues to reverberate in these communities today.

WHAT TO EXPECT

• 75-minute hosted conversation
• DJD Bar with non-alcoholic options
• Complimentary Parking Code (see FAQ)
• Onsite Bookseller: Owl’s Nest Books
• Post-Show signing and author selfies

ABOUT HOST PAM ROCKER

Pam Rocker (she/her) is an American/Canadian, Certified DEIB Specialist, consultant, performer, and writer. From Pride to politics, she has done everything from front a queer feminist ukulele comedy band to advocate for legislation against conversion therapy. She is the playwright of ‘heterophobia’, which also inspired the music video “Don’t Ever Look Back” by Canadian band Shred Kelly. Rocker was chosen as one of the Top 40 Under 40 in Calgary, and as one of the top 30 activists in Canada. She is the former board Chair of Affirm United/S’affirmer Ensemble and Broadview Magazine and serves as a consultant on the National Coalition to End Conversion Practices. She is a frequent instructor at the amazing YouthWrite Alberta, the Director of Affirming Connections (a queer/faith non-profit), and consults all over North America.