My name is Saleem Hue Penny (he/him/friend).

I'm excited and humbled to be the new 2021-22 Poetry Coalition Fellow supporting Zoeglossia.

I'm a South Carolina-born, Chicago-based poet with twin first graders, Ramsay Hunt Syndrome, single-sided deafness, and an uncanny knack for memorizing song lyrics. I've been published in Breakwater Review, POETRY (pending), Tammy Journal, Pidgeonholes, and Zoeglossia's Poem of the Week.

I am drawn to the transformative potential of the literary arts, especially for individuals and communities rendered invisible by ableism and racism.

My professional priorities include:

- Creating restorative literary arts programs and spaces for community members in institutionalized settings (e.g., jails, psychiatric facilities, group homes, assisted living programs, shelters).

- Highlighting promising school-based literary arts programs and developing sustainable funding strategies and structures, beyond pilot grants.

- Launching communities of practice for activists and organizations committed to centering the literary arts in their advocacy platforms.

My TL;DNR vision is a literary arts community where multiply-marginalized disabled people flourish is my vision.

I am overwhelmed by the collective stories and perspectives of the Zoeglossia community. I am eager to support members as they complicate the cannon, shake up the center, and redefine the fringes. It is an honor to advance this critical work with the Zoeglossia community.

Image description – Saleem Hue Penny (he/him/friend) is a Black man with a beard, clear glasses, and an eyeshield over his right eye. Not visible is a right-sided cochlear implant. He wears a white/black mosaic print shirt, a bright red snapback cap (reading: “Dope & Carefree & Proud & Black”), a thin chain necklace with a hand stamped car key (reading: “Deadbolt Determination”). He is positioned against a solid black backdrop, three-quarter angled towards the camera. His right hand is propping up his partially-paralyzed cheek, he appears to smirk, but it’s actually a huge smile preparing to unfurl.