2015 People’s State of the Union

People’s State of the Union Story Circles

What if the annual State of the Union was not a speech spoken by one, but a poem created by many?
The Five Boro Story Project, in partnership with the people-powered U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, invites you to take part in the creation of the 2015 People’s State of the Union. From January 24-29 we are organizing Story Circles throughout the five boroughs. Attend a story circle in your borough and join neighbors in supplementing the President’s State of the Union with your own stories!

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These story circles are an invitation to reflect on your neighborhoods’ past and present, and plan for the future. All attendees are invited to share a 3-minute story and join a community discussion. Share your neighborhood memories, tell a story about a moment you felt true belonging — or the opposite — in your community, describe an experience that showed you something new or important about the state of our union, or tell about a time you stood together with people in your community.

Stories will be shared online, and will provide inspiration for a collective “People’s State of the Union Address” delivered in the form of a poem on Feb 1st at the Bowery Poetry Club.

STATEN ISLAND: Saturday, Jan 24, 2-4pm at the Staten Island Museum, 75 Stuyvesant Place in St. George.
BROOKLYN: Monday, Jan 26, 7-9pm at Bady House, 85 Chester Avenue in Kensington. This story circle is in a private residence with limited space; please RSVP at info@fiveborostoryproject.org.
QUEENS: Tuesday, Jan 27, 7-9pm at Heightening Stories, 74-10 35th Ave in Jackson Heights. This story circle is in a private residence with limited space; please RSVP at info@fiveborostoryproject.org to secure a spot and receive the exact address.
THE BRONX: Wednesday, Jan 28, 7-9pm at the Bronx Music Heritage Center Lab, 1303 Louis Niñé Boulevard in the South Bronx.
MANHATTAN: Thursday, Jan 29, 7-9pm at Word Up Community Bookshop, 2113 Amsterdam Ave at 165th St in Washington Heights.

The U.S. Department of Arts and Culture is a people-powered movement dedicated to cultivating empathy, equity, and social imagination.

Watch 2015 PSOTU Poetic Address:

View photos from FBSP’s PSOTU Story Circles HERE.

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