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Writing the Words They Erased at Gates Public Library
Join us for a generative writing workshop against censorship at Gates Public Library!
This workshop is presented as part of our Rochester Reads 25th Anniversary programming. Participants in this workshop will read excerpts on the subject of censorship from one of our 2026 Rochester Reads selections, Omar El Akkad’s One Day Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This.
What is the role of the writer in an era of increased censorship, where the chilling of speech is a central tactic to suppress dissent, freedom, and social justice? Inspired by BELONG by Gianna Stewart this accessible, generative writing workshop invites you to “take back” one or more words on PEN America’s “Banned Word List” and say exactly what it means to you. Whether in poetry or prose, you’ll explore the associations, images, and personal definitions you have for words the powerful want to erase. Led by Tyler Barton, the workshop will include short readings of powerful works of literature that reclaim language, as well as prompts to get you thinking and your pen moving.
This event is organized in partnership with Gates Public Library.
Read more about BELONG by Gianna Stewart, RoCo’s new public artwork, HERE
ABOUT THE WORKSHOP LEADER
Tyler Barton is the Artistic Director of Writers & Books and the author of Eternal Night at the Nature Museum and The Quiet Part Loud. He has taught writing to children, high schoolers, college kids, library patrons, incarcerated individuals, nursing home residents, and new immigrants. He directs the Joe Flaherty Legacy Writing Workshops for Writers & Books and co-founded Fear No Lit with the artist Erin Dorney. Learn more at tsbarton.com.
Event Links
Tickets: https://go.evvnt.com/3750162-0
Website: https://go.evvnt.com/3750162-2
