Fatal Force: Poetic Justice

Saturday February 17, 2024 – 7pm EST  Virtual

Join us on Zoom (Registration Required): https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIsduGuqTgjEtIm1XVEz94i3LTtCLb8iG5D

As of December 4, 2023, 1085 people have been killed by police in the United States (Mapping Police Violence 2023).

Police officer, Mark Dial shot and killed Eddie Irizarry on August 14, 2023. On August 15^th, Philadelphia police changed their story, stating that Irizarry was actually in the car when he was shot six times. Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw stated that officers’ body-worn camera footage “made it very clear that what we initially reported was not actually what happened.” Read more about the details and legal proceedings here:

(The Killing of Eddie Irizarry).

Martín Espada recently wrote a poem entitled, “Officer Mark Dial, Who Shot Eddie Irizarry, Will Be Fired for Insubordination” to elegize the innocent young man whose alleged murder this past August is an outrage.

Fatal Force : Poetic Justice contributors, featuring Martín Espada, will read their work virtually on February 17^th to honor poet/activist, Julia de Burgos’ birthday. She was the foremother for the Nuyorican Poetry Movement in New York who advocated for anti-imperialism and social justice. Fatal Force: Poetic Justice commemorates her ideals.

Presented by Taller Puertorriqueño, Casa de Duende, and Moonstone