In celebration of Bloomsday and Juneteenth, the Consul General of Ireland in Austin, Robert Hull, and the Executive Director of Torch Literary Arts, Amanda Johnston, invite you to a conversation with Irish writer and author of Twisted: The Tangled History of Black Hair Culture, Emma Dabiri.
Cost: Free
Complimentary copies of Twisted will be available for attendees while supplies last.
Date: June 24, 2025
Time: 1 pm CST
Location: Book People, 603 N Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX 78703
Emma Dabiri is a broadcaster, historian, and bestselling author. Emma’s work often delves into the complexities of identity, culture, and race through art, history, and current affairs. Her Channel 4 documentary Hair Power: Me and My Afro asks how hair became one of the most misunderstood, celebrated, and debated aspects of the black experience. It won a Cannes Lion Silver award in the Entertainment Category. She presented several series of Britain’s Lost Masterpieces for BBC4 and Back in Time for Brixton, and The Sweet Makers for BBC2. She’s also taken part in lively debates on Unapologetic (C4) and the controversial Jimmy Carr Destroys Art (C4), Question Time (BBC1), and Have I Got News For You (BBC2). Emma's latest book, Disobedient Bodies: Reclaim Your Unruly Beauty, has been praised as “an incisive, radical essay offering empowering alternatives to the pressures of pervasive beauty standards”. In April 2021 Emma released What White People Can Do Next: From Allyship to Coalition, which was an immediate Times and Sunday Times bestseller. WWPCDN is a clever deconstruction of the mainstream conversation around anti-racism. It followed on from her debut work, Don’t Touch My Hair (Twisted, US), which was an Irish Times Bestseller. DTMH also inspired a national conversation about race and hair and has led to changing regulations in schools and in the British army.
The Consulate General in Austin works to promote and protect Irish interests in the US southern central states, whether it is working with the Irish community, promoting Irish economic interests or supporting the strong partnership between Ireland and the states of the southern central US.
Torch Literary Arts is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established to publish and promote creative writing by Black women. We publish contemporary writing by experienced and emerging writers alike. Torch has featured work by Colleen J. McElroy, Tayari Jones, Sharon Bridgforth, Crystal Wilkinson, Patricia Smith, Natasha Trethewey, Elizabeth Alexander, and others. Programs include the Wildfire Reading Series, writing workshops, and retreats.
This event is made possible with support from the Austin Economic Development Department, the Burdine Johnson Foundation, Book People, and the Consulate General of Ireland - Austin.
Won't you celebrate with us?
Please consider donating to support Torch and help fuel our flame for generations to come.
Celebrate Herstory
$25.00 - Celebrate the vast contributions of Black women writers throughout history.
Winner's Circle
$50.00 - Celebrate Torch receiving the inaugural AWP Writing Organization Award in 2025.
Features
$75.00 - Join the excitement for Torch publishing the work of a Black woman writer every Friday in Torch Magazine (online). Torch Magazine has featured emerging and established Texas writers, including LaToya Watkins, Lisa B. Thompson, Debora DEEP Mouton, Ebony Stewart, and Andrea Vocab Sanderson.
Trailblazer
$100.00 - Honor how Torch helps to light a path for Black women writers to have their voices, stories, and perspectives heard and held here in the U.S. and abroad. For two straight years, Torch Magazine has been recognized by the Pushcart Prize Best of the Small Presses.
About This Event
In celebration of Bloomsday and Juneteenth, the Consul General of Ireland in Austin, Robert Hull, and the Executive Director of Torch Literary Arts, Amanda Johnston, invite you to a conversation with Irish writer and author of Twisted: The Tangled History of Black Hair Culture, Emma Dabiri.
Cost: Free
Complimentary copies of Twisted will be available for attendees while supplies last.
Date: June 24, 2025
Time: 1 pm CST
Location: Book People, 603 N Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX 78703
Emma Dabiri is a broadcaster, historian, and bestselling author. Emma’s work often delves into the complexities of identity, culture, and race through art, history, and current affairs. Her Channel 4 documentary Hair Power: Me and My Afro asks how hair became one of the most misunderstood, celebrated, and debated aspects of the black experience. It won a Cannes Lion Silver award in the Entertainment Category. She presented several series of Britain’s Lost Masterpieces for BBC4 and Back in Time for Brixton, and The Sweet Makers for BBC2. She’s also taken part in lively debates on Unapologetic (C4) and the controversial Jimmy Carr Destroys Art (C4), Question Time (BBC1), and Have I Got News For You (BBC2). Emma's latest book, Disobedient Bodies: Reclaim Your Unruly Beauty, has been praised as “an incisive, radical essay offering empowering alternatives to the pressures of pervasive beauty standards”. In April 2021 Emma released What White People Can Do Next: From Allyship to Coalition, which was an immediate Times and Sunday Times bestseller. WWPCDN is a clever deconstruction of the mainstream conversation around anti-racism. It followed on from her debut work, Don’t Touch My Hair (Twisted, US), which was an Irish Times Bestseller. DTMH also inspired a national conversation about race and hair and has led to changing regulations in schools and in the British army.
The Consulate General in Austin works to promote and protect Irish interests in the US southern central states, whether it is working with the Irish community, promoting Irish economic interests or supporting the strong partnership between Ireland and the states of the southern central US.
Torch Literary Arts is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established to publish and promote creative writing by Black women. We publish contemporary writing by experienced and emerging writers alike. Torch has featured work by Colleen J. McElroy, Tayari Jones, Sharon Bridgforth, Crystal Wilkinson, Patricia Smith, Natasha Trethewey, Elizabeth Alexander, and others. Programs include the Wildfire Reading Series, writing workshops, and retreats.
This event is made possible with support from the Austin Economic Development Department, the Burdine Johnson Foundation, Book People, and the Consulate General of Ireland - Austin.
Won't you celebrate with us?
Please consider donating to support Torch and help fuel our flame for generations to come.
Celebrate Herstory
$25.00 - Celebrate the vast contributions of Black women writers throughout history.
Winner's Circle
$50.00 - Celebrate Torch receiving the inaugural AWP Writing Organization Award in 2025.
Features
$75.00 - Join the excitement for Torch publishing the work of a Black woman writer every Friday in Torch Magazine (online). Torch Magazine has featured emerging and established Texas writers, including LaToya Watkins, Lisa B. Thompson, Debora DEEP Mouton, Ebony Stewart, and Andrea Vocab Sanderson.
Trailblazer
$100.00 - Honor how Torch helps to light a path for Black women writers to have their voices, stories, and perspectives heard and held here in the U.S. and abroad. For two straight years, Torch Magazine has been recognized by the Pushcart Prize Best of the Small Presses.
Getting There
Book People
603 N Lamar Blvd, Austin
Austin, Texas 78703
United States
