All proceeds from the sale of this track will go to support the Afghan Legal Empowerment Portal, the Uplift Afghanistan Fund, the Afghan American Artists and Writers Association, and Artivista Productions' efforts to help cultural workers, civil servants, and human rights defenders in Afghanistan find safety.

I invite you to join me in supporting my brilliant friend - artist and activist, that is to say, artivista Kayhan Irani. Her work is transcendental and I’m so happy to be contributing a bespoke poem for the Shab e Yalda evening celebration she has organized for December 28, 2021. (www.eventbrite.com/e/a-solstice-and-shabe-yalda-celebration-for-afghanistan-tickets-220947498917).
This is a free event for which we will ask for donations to support the aforementioned associations.

“Shab e Yalda is an ancient festival of light, abundance, and gratitude in the darkness of winter. On the winter solstice, Afghans, Iranians, Kurds, Parsees, Azeris, and Persianate societies across West, South, and Central Asia have gathered around a korsi with their families, friends, and beloved community to pass the longest and darkest night of the year. They tell stories, read poetry, enjoy festive food, sing songs, light candles to banish fear and wait for the rebirth of the sun.

This year, our family and loved ones in Afghanistan - and those who are connected to that land and culture - are living through and witnessing the very real impacts of successive wars, generational trauma, and unending heartache.” Kayhan Irani

Kayhan is organizing Mutual Aids efforts on behalf of artists in Afghanistan and I hope you will join me in supporting her efforts. Learn more here. www.artivista.org/blog