Issues

Carpool

In Issue 1: In Transit

Zainab Mahdi

The streets were eternal back thenback when back seat was a canopy of armsstretched out like the solsticethe thump of tire on chewed cementjolting the deviance from feeble bodiesMomma was no pilot, bu... Read more

Yusuf

In Issue 1: In Transit

Zain Bandali

trapped in a moving trainknee to knee with an archangel sun radiating off sandy complexionmanicured stubble lining jawline sharp and effortlesstaste of blood floods to my mouth Ya Khaaliq, You are the... Read more

Culture

In Issue 1: In Transit

Samantha Estoesta Williams

The first time I saw Apo Tudo, The Ilocano rain deity, I swear, he sent mist to that mountain Outside of Baguio Kissing the Filipino soil with sweet promises and tearful memories My grandmother share... Read more

Grieving a Stranger

In Issue 1: In Transit

Meseret Abebe

My parents came to Canada as refugees in the late ’80s for better opportunities and to escape Ethiopia’s hellish dictatorship. Though I cannot know the extent of their struggles, I can speak of th... Read more

Time Moves Both Ways

In Issue 1: In Transit

Ellie Anglin

Last summer, my wife and I rode our bikes together along the Cambridge to Paris rail trail—an eighteen kilometer venture alongside an out-of-use train track. Don’t get me wrong, I’m no fitness q... Read more

Enigma

In Issue 2: Space(s)

Seemab Zahra

Listen to Seemab read her poem: Textile · Enigma - Seemab ZahraWhat mystery do you hide in your inability to endure a dream that is empty of my existence? Now I am in disbelief; For you have become t... Read more

An Ode to Closure

In Issue 2: Space(s)

Rumaisa Bhatti Conan Stark Shukri Abdi Areeba Shaikh

Last year students from Cameron Heights Collegiate Institute (CHCI) filled the pages of issue i with creative writing and visual art. For issue ii, we had hoped to continue our collaboration with the school through a series of in-person workshops, and to connect with more students from high schools across Waterloo Region. COVID-19 put these plans on hold, but fortunately, one art teacher from CHCI fought to keep his students connected with us. We thank all the workers in education and students who continue to navigate complexity during the pandemic, especially those who give time and energy to facilitate opportunities for artistic development. Read more

Policing the Pandemic

In Issue 2: Space(s)

Niara van Gaalen Seemab Zahra Yasmeen Nematt Alla Tomi A. Ryan Antooa

When the first wave of COVID-19 in March 2020 set off emergency orders in Ontario, police departments were given increased powers to enforce public health measures that called for self-isolation and physical distancing. Neighbours were also encouraged to police each other through the use of “snitch-lines”, and an expanded state of surveillance was assumed as a new normal. This deepened pre-existing police presence and control in neighbourhoods where more poor, Black, Indigenous, and immigrant communities live. KW Article Club, a reading group and art collective based in Waterloo Region, informed by work from local and international Black activists and organizers, sought to address these structural inequities in March 2020 through a zine titled #PolicingThePandemic. The following feature is an adapted version of that zine that adds two pieces that delve into the impact policing has on Black people, making a case for why we continue to strive towards a future where we prioritize care instead of enforcement. Read more

This House

In Issue 2: Space(s)

Yasmeen Nematt Alla

Listen to Yasmeen talk about working with Textile on the Watershed Writers Podcast. I am leaving this house, moving an hour away, trying to feel like I am worth a beginning,my mother tells me I am bre... Read more

Fleece Brutality

In Issue 2: Space(s)

Ryan Antooa

Say it loudFor those with fabrics of beingTattered, brokenReturning to the Earth they were sewn fromFor those who wishTheir bodies were wrapped in cloth dyed differentlyNot having dying instantlyWith ... Read more

I promise we did not gather

In Issue 2: Space(s)

Yasmeen Nematt Alla

When this Eid hits, we know we will spend it alone and at home and it’s fine. My family is safe and together and I am grateful for so much. We make chai and have Eid cookies and there is warmth here... Read more

Year 2020

In Issue 2: Space(s)

Seemab Zahra

I see metal falling from the sky.I see metal soaring up high,and monsters rising from the ground,sucking up humans.You say 2020 has awakened all the sleeping monsters.I say these monsters were busy in... Read more

When I First Stepped on the Moon (Digital Storytelling Workshop)

Seemab Zahra

Man first stepped on the moon in 1969. I heard this when I was a child, barely seven or eight years. I started searching for more about it, but there was no internet in Pakistan... Read more

Grieving a Stranger (Digital Storytelling Workshop)

Meseret Abebe

My parents came to Canada as refugees in the late ’80s for better opportunities and to escape Ethiopia’s dictatorship. Though I cannot know the extent of their struggles, I can speak of their consequences... Read more