Slamlandia Poetry Open Mic ft. The Poet Lady Rose

Join us on JUNE 5TH for an IN PERSON poetry open mic at Guilder Cafe inside of the downtown Powell's Books!

Sign-ups now start are at 6:00 PM, and the show will begin at 6:30 PM.

This show is just a poetry open mic with a feature. If you wish to attend a poetry slam, please come out to our third Thursday show (at Literary Arts)!

Poets get 3 minutes on the mic to share one poem, or two *very* short poems. If sign ups are light, an announcment at the start of the show will be made that poets may have more time to read.

Just poetry on the mic - no music or stand up, please!

This show is all ages.
This show is free to attend, but we will be taking donations to pay our featured poet. Suggested donation is $5.

Guilder Cafe
1035 W Burnside St.
Portland, OR 97209

Here are some important COVID-related things to note:
-- While not mandatory, masks are STRONGLY ENCOURAGED
-- COVID is still a very real thing, please be smart and safe and, if you are feeling ill the day before/of, please stay home and do not come to this event

We will have a feature from The Poet Lady Rose!

La Toya A. Hampton, MSW (she/they), artistically known as The Poet Lady Rose, a Black, Indigenous and queer Portland native is a renowned mentor, educator, poet, and filmmaker. She began performing in 2008, taking on her stage name in honor of her late father Roosevelt. Possessing a Masters of Social Work from Cal State Long Beach, her background in mental health, social work and education fortifies her mission to inspire others to not only embrace, but to find strength in their unique identities and stories, empowering them to own and amplify their voices.Her work appears in the anthologies Acid Verse Volume II: The Earth Beneath Our Feet, and Reflesh: Dreaming the Future, both published by the Los Angeles Poet Society. She was named “Poet of the Week” by the Sims Library of Poetry for her piece “Mic Checks and Balances.” Additionally, her work has been showcased in the University of Oregon’s Unceded Kinship: Land, Place and People and the Portland Art Museum’s Black Artists of Oregon exhibitions. Frequently partnering with community organizations, her poetry often aligns with their missions, magnifying their messages and beautifully acknowledging their work, while recognizing the population they serve. With a gift for engaging diverse audiences— from community open mics to stages shared with New York Times bestselling authors and performances at the Oregon State House of Representatives, as well as vehicle of storytelling in the films Black Girl in Suburbia and Petals and Thorns: A Spoken Word Journey—she uses poetry to build bridges, spark meaningful dialogue, and celebrate resilience and humanity. She is currently preparing to release her debut poetry collection, Holes of a Piece of Me: An Introduction to Lady Rose.

Please see our Accessibility and Safer Space info below.

★ •*´¨`*• O P E N • M I C •*´¨`*• ★
Our open mic goes for an hour, followed by a reading from our feature. We will take as many sign ups that come our way, but we will only get through as many folks as we can in an hour, so come early to ensure a spot on the open mic. First come, first served. Poets get 3 minutes to share on the mic.
★ •*´¨`*• A C C E S S I B I L I T Y •*´¨`*• ★
Powell's books meets ADA requirements. There are entrances and bathrooms there are accessible, and the building has both ramps and elevators throughout. Please reach out for more information.
★ •*´¨`*• S A F E R • S P A C E • P O L I C Y •*´¨`*• ★
(1) – Slamlandia is committed to the safety of our community and all of its members. This includes but is not limited to performers, audience members, venue staff, volunteers, featured poets, and Executive Council members. We will not allow any act of hate, bigotry, harassment, or violence within our space and will prohibit the entrance of those who have committed these acts in or outside of our space.
(2) – The Slamlandia community is a community based in consent. It is the responsibility of individuals initiating contact to receive enthusiastic consent for the following activities:
☆ Physical contact
☆ Discussion of personal or heavy topics
☆ Discussion of poetry shared on stage
(3) – Slamlandia does not censor our mic and space - with the exception of hate speech. Hate speech includes, but is not limited to threats of violence, the use of slurs for a group you do not belong to, racism, sexism, transphobia, transmisogyny, homophobia, classicism, and ableism.
☆ Marginalized voices expressing anger toward the group of people oppressing them does not fall under the category of hate speech.
☆ In the event that a performer is using hate speech on stage, an Executive Council member will end their performance and ask them to leave the stage.
☆ In the event that a performer uses hate speech, it is the responsibility of the Executive Council to explain to the performer why this was a violation of our hate speech policy to the best of their ability and point them to resources for further explanation.

Also check out other Arts events in Portland, Literary Art events in Portland.