1-800 Happy Birthday closing weekend

MLK Weekend
At 1-800 Happy Birthday
7 Knickerbocker Avenue, Brooklyn
All events are free and open to the public. Program details below.

Sunday, January 15, 2023
1-6pm - Blk Book Swap Stoop Sale
2-3pm - Screening of VICE News: Inside One of America’s Deadliest Police Departments Screening
4-6pm - Screening of Fruitvale Station

Monday, January 16, 2023, MLK Day
12-6pm - Exhibition on View, Last Day
3-6pm - Closing Birthday Party
3-4pm - Matthew Jamal Live Music Solo
4pm - Birthday Cake
4pm - Remarks by Mohammad Gorjestani
4:30pm - Spoken Word by Lolo Lature
5-6pm - DJ April Hunt

blk book swap

Sunday, January 15 1-6 pm

Blk Book Swap is an independent book lending initiative and inclusive pop-up event that aims to “get books off of shelves and into readers hands.” As the name suggests, this is done through community book swaps, where people can exchange up to three books primarily by Black, Indigenous, Latinx and POC authors. The initiative originally started as a mail-only swap and has since grown into an in-person project that has hosted more than a dozen events throughout the past year. The initiatives' founder, Trae Higgs, often connects with her growing social media following and online community through relatable book memes and reels, and she encourages folks to share book recommendations with each other and center BIPOC authors on their own reading lists.

VICE NEWS: INSIDE ONE OF AMERICA’S DEADLIEST POLICE DEPARTMENTS SCREENING

Sunday, January 15 at 2-3pm 

Followed by Q&A with Roberto Daza, Senior Editorial Producer, VICE Media

WORTHLESSSTUDIOS is hosting an in-person film screening of VICE News: Inside One of America’s Deadliest Police Departments, as part of the 1-800 Happy Birthday exhibition. In this important film, VICE News investigates how a culture of impunity has fueled the rate of deadly shootings and how the family of Sean Monterrosa fights for change. Monterrosa is one of 12 celebrants featured in the 1-800 Happy Birthday exhibition and this one-time screening keeps his legacy alive. Following the screening will be a conversation with the filmmaker that addresses address police violence and systemic racism in America and alternative and aspirational futures where Black and Brown people are safe.

SCREENING OF FRUITVALE STATION

Sunday, January 15 at 4-6pm

Fruitvale Station is the true story of Oscar Grant, a 22-year-old Bay Area resident and one of the celebrants honored in the 1-800 Happy Birthday exhibition. The 2013 film by Ryan Coogler features Oscar Grant's story alongside his mother's, Reverend Wanda Johnson, a member of the 1-800 Happy Birthday advisory board and a crucial part of the project. On the 10th anniversary of its release, the story and themes of Fruitvale Station remain incredibly relevant to the 1-800 Happy Birthday project and the world at large.

TRAE HIGGS

Trae Higgs is a community organizer by passion and a legal professional by trade. Originally from South Florida, Trae has lived in Brooklyn since 2014 and has been organizing Blk Book Swap since 2020. She's a December Sagittarius, loves iced-coffee and has a not-so-guilty obsession with The Real Housewives franchises.

LOLO LATURE

Lorien Lolo Lature Carter was born in Madison, WI, and raised on the Upper West Side of NYC. She is a mother, an author, a writer, a poet, and an advocate for the Black and Brown community. She moved back to Madison, WI, and would later begin her community/activist work in 2015, after the homicide of her 19 year old nephew, Tony Robinson, at the hands of Madison police officer Matt Kenny. Since then, she's become a voice for the Youth, a highly decorated speaker, and a pillar for the Black and Brown community. Receiving multiple awards for these achievements. Lorien has dedicated her life to being a voice for the voiceless.

DJ Hunt

April Hunt is a New York based DJ who has worked in art and public relations.

MATTHEW JAMAL

New York based multi-instrumentalist and composer, Matthew Jamal (b. 1999) was born and raised in Maryland. His vast musical palette draws inspiration from folk, gospel, jazz and classical music, to name a few. He released his debut EP, Itinerant, in 2020 which featured improvisational music using only the sounds of his double bass and voice.