The Second Annual Read & Resist Fest took place on Saturday, September 20, 2025, from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM at Interlink Publishing, located at 46 Crosby Street in Northampton, Massachusetts.
Interlink Publishing—the only Palestinian-owned book publisher in the United States— once again hosted this outdoor social justice and literary festival dedicated to collective liberation. The festival featured a book sale, more than twenty queer, trans and/or BIPOC vendors, children’s activities, all-ages workshops, teach-ins, music, and food. Attendees also participated in hands-on activities such as screen printing, letter writing, and zine-making.
The Read & Resist Fest began in 2024 as a collaboration between local organizers and Interlink Publishing to create a space for community building, education, and organizing toward a more equitable world both locally and internationally. Last year’s festival drew over five hundred attendees, and this year’s event is expected to be even bigger and better with grant funding from the Northampton Arts Council and Interlink Foundation.
The festival hosted over twenty social justice organizations, including Western Mass Jewish Voice for Peace, Western Mass Asylum Support Network, River Valley Democratic Socialists of America, UMass Students & Faculty for Justice in Palestine, Translate Gender, Collective Power for Reproductive Justice, and many more.
“We wanted to create a physical space where people who believe in social justice and collective liberation could come together, learn, and organize. After the 2024 election, more people have realized that injustice and oppression has been happening right here in our communities. It is more urgent than ever to come together and connect to work towards change. All of our struggles and those around the world, are intertwined.”— Statement from Read & Resist Fest organizers
TEACH-IN/AUTHOR EVENT LINE UP:
11:00 am: 6 Abolitionists You Were Never Taught in School
Teach-in on abolition by Dr. Amilcar Shabazz and Tom Wiener, authors of In Defiance: 20 Abolitionists You Were Never Taught in School.
KIDS CORNER: 11:30 am: Palestine Storytime
Storytime of Homeland: My Father Dreams of Palestine read by Hannah Moushabeck, play-along music with percussion by Michel Moushabeck.
12:00 pm: Care at the End of the World: Dreaming of Infrastructure in Crip-of-Color Writing
Teach in by Jina B. Kim, author and Assistant Professor of English and the Study of Women, Gender, and Sexuality at Smith College.
1:00 pm: Palestinian Poetry Teach-in
Teach-in by George Abraham, Palestinian American poet, editor, essayist, critic, and performance artist.
2:00 pm: Everything I Learned About Racism I Learned in School
Book talk by bestselling author and educator of antiracist and social justice education, Tiffany Jewell.
KIDS CORNER: 2:30 pm: Queer History Teach-in for Kids!
Kid-friendly teach-in by Sarah Prager, author of Kind LIke Marsha
3:00 pm: Immigration Protections Teach-In
Teach-in by immigration lawyer and activist, Elliot Oberholtzer
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