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Shasta H Ali

@shastahali.bsky.social
439 followers 194 following 25 posts

Writer. Poet. Dreamer. Racial Equity at Corra. Communities. Chai for the win.

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Reposted by Shasta H Ali
National Theatre of Scotland @ntsonline.bsky.social · 28/03/2026
More info here: www.nationaltheatrescotland.com/latest/mayda...
nationaltheatrescotland.com
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Reposted by Shasta H Ali
National Theatre of Scotland @ntsonline.bsky.social · 28/03/2026
Mayday, Mayday, Mayday! Cora Bissett & Hannah Lavery present an urgent, collective response to the times we are living through with a one-night-only gathering. BOOK NOW Friday 1 May 2026, 7pm Central Halls, Edinburgh www.nationaltheatrescotland.com/events/mayday
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Shasta H Ali @shastahali.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
Excited for this! 😍
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I Am Loud CIC @iamloudpro.bsky.social · 19/01/2026
Our first Open Mic of 2026 is NEXT WEEK! Our first feature poet is our Grand Slam Champion, Aditya Narayan! Aditya is a spoken word poet born in India and performing in the UK for over a year. He is the current Roundhouse Slam Champion and the reigning Loud Poets Grand Slam Champion.
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Shasta H Ali @shastahali.bsky.social · 09/08/2025
This is going to be the best blether on belonging, language and poetry @edbookfest.bsky.social. So excited to be chairing Karen on her beautiful collection - Minx @karendownsbarton.bsky.social. See you next week #EdBookFest #poetry
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The Guardian @theguardian.com · 02/08/2025
This is the week Scotland was forced to confront its role in slavery, and say: ‘Yes, that was us’ | Hannah Lavery
theguardian.com
This is the week Scotland was forced to confront its role in slavery, and say: ‘Yes, that was us’ | Hannah Lavery
Guardian revelations about Edinburgh University’s links to both the practice and theory of the evil trade must now provoke a national reckoning on race, says poet and playwright Hannah Lavery
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Shasta H Ali @shastahali.bsky.social · 02/08/2025
Powerful read from @hannahlavery.bsky.social over on @theguardian.com ‘History is not settled. Our story is not finished’ www.theguardian.com/commentisfre... .
theguardian.com
This is the week Scotland was forced to confront its role in slavery, and say: ‘Yes, that was us’ | Hannah Lavery
Guardian revelations about Edinburgh University’s links to both the practice and theory of the evil trade must now provoke a national reckoning on race, says poet and playwright Hannah Lavery
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Shasta H Ali @shastahali.bsky.social · 16/07/2025
Come join us for an evening of poetry and fundraising for families in Gaza @lighthousebks.bsky.social
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Shasta H Ali @shastahali.bsky.social · 21/06/2025
Come see us for #DisruptingTheNarrative at the @edbookfest.bsky.social A poetry performance interrogating Edinburgh’s historic & heritage collections. Photography by Kat Gollock’s & music set to our poems by S.Niroshini Hannah Lavery Niall Moorjani Jeda Pearl Alycia Pirmohamed
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The Guardian @theguardian.com · 22/05/2025
What did you do during the genocide in Gaza? | Arwa Mahdawi
theguardian.com
What did you do during the genocide in Gaza? | Arwa Mahdawi
When future generations read about Gaza with horror and wonder how we allowed a livestreamed genocide to happen, what will you say?
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Rosanna McGlone @rosannamcglone.bsky.social · 27/03/2025
Rereading this poweful little beauty @sidhepress.bsky.social @shastahali.bsky.social @oormilaprahlad.bsky.social @janeburn.bsky.social as we really need light right now. #Poetry #domesticviolence
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Ibram X. Kendi @ibramxk.bsky.social · 09/03/2025
Their silencing must be our speaking. Words to encourage in our homes, institutions, and neighborhoods. Source: NYT
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Foysol Choudhury MBE @foysolchoudhury.bsky.social · 03/03/2025
In March's @edinreporter.bsky.social 📰 Read it here t.co/kmNfGqthZm
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Regenerative Futures Fund @regenfuturesfund.bsky.social · 05/03/2025
We're looking for people living in Edinburgh who have experienced poverty and/or racism and want to see real change in the city. A paid opportunity to help decide which community projects will really make a difference and get funded for ten years. regenerativefuturesfund.org.uk/join-us/resi...
Image shows a poster advertising the opportunity. More info at https://regenerativefuturesfund.org.uk/join-us/residents
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Shasta H Ali @shastahali.bsky.social · 06/03/2025
Reflecting on @corra.scot brill #CYPFEIFConference2025 I had the best audience to travel to the future with. Huge thanks to all the delegates for being open, hopeful & visionary. As always 🙌🏽 @lighthousebks.bsky.social whose shopfront messages of hope I use for all my #CollectiveImagination sessions
A woman with long brown hair, back to the camera looking at postcards stuck on a wall. A woman standing at a conference delivering a talk with a sign at the back of her which says “hope is a radical act. Nothing changes without dreaming and doing’Two postcards with hand drawn images and writing saying ‘we did it’ and ‘revolutionise, disrupt’
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Regenerative Futures Fund @regenfuturesfund.bsky.social · 04/03/2025
Hey there it's Andy here, just arriving in bsky. Working with the brilliant @leahblack.bsky.social and Aala on the Regenerative Futures Fund regenerativefuturesfund.org.uk a 10 year community fund for Edinburgh that puts decision-making power into the hands of those most often excluded.
regenerativefuturesfund.org.uk
Regenerative Futures Fund | Working Together Towards A Regenerative And Just Future For Edinburgh | Community Fund | Scotland - UK
The Regenerative Futures Fund is a ten-year community fund for Edinburgh that puts decision-making power into the hands of those who are most often excluded. It supports approaches to improve the live...
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Carolyn Sawers @four-story.bsky.social · 26/02/2025
One of my conference takeaways today, from a beautiful imagination exercise led by my colleague @shastahali.bsky.social
Postcard pinned on wall that says 'hopeful / unwritten' with a red origami fox beside it
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Jude Turbyne @judeturbyne.bsky.social · 26/02/2025
So nice to be chairing the CYPFEIF&ALEC/CYPFAL conference with @corrafoundation.bsky.social . Such a brilliant bunch of people in the room, and loved our Collective Imagination Session session with the lovely @shastahali.bsky.social this morning.
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John Swinney @johnswinney.bsky.social · 05/02/2025
After months of collective punishment and the death of over 40,000 in Gaza, any suggestion Palestinians should be removed from their home is unacceptable and dangerous. There must be no ethnic cleansing. Only a proper two state solution will bring lasting peace.
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I Am Loud CIC @iamloudpro.bsky.social · 30/01/2025
A big update:
Graphic with the I Am Loud Productions logo and text reading:
We are incredibly grateful and relieved to have been awarded Multi-Year Funding to support our work through 2028.
This vital long-term investment will enable us to continue supporting, developing, and showcasing the fantastic Scottish spoken word poetry scene. We are excited to continue expanding access to this brilliant art form to all, making this scene more sustainable, and innovating new projects and collaborations.
We are immensely thankful to Creative Scotland for this support, and to all of the poets, producers, partners, and audiences who have believed in what we do over the past 11 years: this has always been, and continues to be, for you.
Thank you, and LET'S GO!
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Caitlin Skinner @caitskin.bsky.social · 11/01/2025
I'm in Pitlochry. It's gorgeous, as are these writers. @hannahlavery.bsky.social @catacts.bsky.social @shastahali.bsky.social
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Leah Black @leahblack.bsky.social · 10/01/2025
How to start the year! Celebrating achievements of Edinburgh based Bengali women’s group Mohila Ogrojatra in Scottish Parliament. Women, confidence, showing leadership, public speaking, there was even poetry 💜 Supported by @shastahali.bsky.social and her colleagues at @corrafoundation.bsky.social
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Leah Black @leahblack.bsky.social · 20/12/2024
A wee reflection on our Regenerative Futures Fund collective imaginagion work in 2024 💜 leah-black.medium.com/developing-a... @shastahali.bsky.social + not sure who else is on here, hopefully I find you all! 🌿✍️
leah-black.medium.com
Developing A Regenerative Futures Fund #13: ‘All That Is Needed Is A Dream’
In 2021 I started with a dream, a funding utopia an imagining of a different future for communities in Edinburgh. My funding utopia was…
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Joseph Rowntree Foundation @jrf-uk.bsky.social · 02/12/2024
Bangladeshi, Black African and Pakistani families are up to 5x more likely to be living in severe poverty for a long time compared to white families in the UK 📢 We've carried out new research to understand what these families experience and why they have this elevated risk 1/6
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Shasta H Ali @shastahali.bsky.social · 05/12/2024
Maybe now the silent majority will get behind a ceasefire and start calling it a genocide.
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Susie Dent @susiedentwords.bsky.social · 01/12/2024
Word of the day is a favourite, from old Scots. To ‘tartle’ is to hesitate while introducing someone because you have completely forgotten their name.
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Alycia Pirmohamed @alycia.bsky.social · 04/12/2024
so inspired by Jasleen Kaur makes me think of how representation at the gallery or lit event isn't the work done. the politics that underline our art aren't thought experiments. real life action must happen, a changed world must follow. if not, these places aren't housing our art, they're caging it
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Rachel Hamada @rachelhamada.bsky.social · 03/12/2024
❤️‍🔥 Jasleen Kaur, on winning the Turner Prize: “I’ve been wondering why artists are required to dream up liberation in the gallery but when that dream meets life we are shut down” youtu.be/6RoLMAf37qY
youtu.be
Turner Prize 2024 Jasleen Kaur
YouTube video by chunkymark
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Saul Staniforth @saulstaniforth.bsky.social · 04/12/2024
Last night Turner Prize 2024 winner Jasleen Kaur used her acceptance speech to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people, to demand an end to institutional complicity in Israels genocide & to call for an immediate arms embargo.
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Corra Foundation @corra.scot · 29/11/2024
Today’s #HenryDuncanGrants community story is from Scottish Arab Women’s Association, who are all about befriending & empowerment: www.corra.scot/scott... Thank you to Huda Alarishi, Chairperson of Scottish Arab Women Association, for writing this piece for us.
corra.scot
Scottish Arab Women Association
Scottish Arab Women Association (SAWA) aim to empower women and families from Arab and Ethnic Minority backgrounds.
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Rosanna McGlone @rosannamcglone.bsky.social · 30/11/2024
This is an absolutely fabulous book. Highly recommended.
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National Theatre of Scotland @ntsonline.bsky.social · 20/11/2024
We are delighted that Hannah Lavery has been nominated for Best Narrator at this year's AudioUK’s 2024 Audio Production Awards for Finding Seaglass 🏆 This emotional story of love, loss, grief, and hope is also available to listen to again on BBC Sounds
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Leah Black @leahblack.bsky.social · 25/11/2024
On Friday @ Push The Boat Out poetry festival in Edinburgh, poets @jedapearl.bsky.social @alycia.bsky.social Hannah Lavery, Niall Moorjani + my friend @shastahali.bsky.social absolutely owned the stage, their presence, confidence, vulnerability and unity was powerful, moving, my heart was thumping 💕
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Jeda Pearl @jedapearl.bsky.social · 23/11/2024
Disrupting the Narrative performance last night moved through what it means to live in Edinburgh as Black & brown people whose heritages intersect with it's colonial history. Such an honour to share & hold space with Hannah Lavery, @alycia.bsky.social @shastahali.bsky.social Niall Moorjani 1/
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Shasta H Ali @shastahali.bsky.social · 21/11/2024
So looking forward to this tomorrow evening #PushTheBoatOut poetry festival. Truly disrupting the narrative around Edinburgh’s heritage & historic collections with these wonderful humans. Set to haunting photography by Kat & stunning music by Niroshini for each of our poems . See you there 🫶🏽
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Coalition for Racial Equality and Rights @crer-scotland.bsky.social · 20/11/2024
In case you missed it yesterday, CRER's new analysis of racial inequalities in socio-economic deprivation is available now at the link below.
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Corra Foundation @corra.scot · 21/11/2024
First up we have Ubuntu Women Shelter, based in Glasgow: www.corra.scot/ubuntu-women... They provide support for destitute women and people of other marginalised genders who have no recourse to public funds, and have insecure immigration status in Scotland.
corra.scot
Ubuntu Women Shelter-
A blog by Ubuntu Women Shelter Director Dania Thomas about their charitable objective to develop a trauma-informed wellbeing programme.
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Jeda Pearl @jedapearl.bsky.social · 15/11/2024
This time next week! Friday 22 Nov at Push the Boat Out Resting as Artists 11:15 am Dance Base, Studio 3 Free, ticketed Disrupting the Narrative 8:30 pm Scottish Storytelling Centre £15 /£12 /or £5 with festival pass BSL interpreted Free live-stream, captions jedapearl.com/push-the-boa...
Text with event details as in caption. 
Top right photos of five people of colour clockwise: Hannah with hair tied back and wearing glasses, smiling and looking into distance, wooden fence blurry in background, Alycia with hair flowing in the wind, standing in front of a bush with lots of star flowers, Shasta with hair in sleek side-parting, smiling, Niall wearing pink baseball cap and top, with mirror, lamp and paintings in background; Jeda with long curly hair, smiling, in front of teal wall.
Middle left photos of three people, clockwise: Jeda again same photo but can see top of patterned dress, Alan with arms crossed, wears grey jacket, standing in front of wall with shadows of plants; Elspeth with long straight brown hair, wears pink shirt, is smiling, thick greenery in background.
Bottom of image has Push The Boat Out branding with swirly lines and circular shapes.
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Shasta H Ali @shastahali.bsky.social · 16/11/2024
Can’t wait!! 💙
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