This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, thanks to legislative appropriations from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
5/5
…the Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop (MPWW) and Moon Palace Books. The ReEntry Lab is an organization working to connect writers and other artists leaving incarceration to a community that’s ready to receive them.
4/5
…both reading and open mic will feature ASL interpretation.
Light refreshments will be served; masks are required at Moon Palace Books and are available on-site. This is a free event.
Better Things is a series of events sponsored by the ReEntry Lab, in partnership with…
3/5
After the main reading, there will be a short break for refreshments, followed by an open mic period. All are welcome to show up and participate in the open mic! (List is first come, first serve.) This reading, and the open mic afterward, will be hosted by @davigray.com and Erin Sharkey;
2/5
Flyer with text reading: “Better Things - a 5x5 reading for social change - the reading everybody will be talking about the next day. Moon Palace Books, 3032 Minnehaha Avenue, April 7th, 2026, 7 pm.” Small photos of each of five readers, labeled by name: Sagirah Shahid, Suzanne Locke, Isavela Lopez, Ben Westlie, and Nick Metcalf.
Please join us on Tuesday, April 7th, at 7:00pm, at @moonpalacebooks.bsky.social, for our next 5×5 Reading, featuring five fantastic artists: Sagirah Shahid, Suzanne Locke, Isavela Lopez, Ben Westlie, and Nick Metcalf.
1/5
Next Tues, our MFA student Zeke Caligiuri is co-hosting (with @davigray.com) this cool reading presented by @reentrylab.org @moonpalacebooks.bsky.social and Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop:
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
9/9
Better Things is a series of events sponsored by @reentrylab.bsky.social, in partnership with Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop and Moon Palace Books. The ReEntry Lab is an organization working to connect writers and other artists leaving incarceration to a community that’s ready to receive them.
…followed by an open mic. Both reading and open mic will feature ASL interpretation.
Light refreshments will be served; masks are required at Moon Palace Books and are available on-site. This is a free event.
7/9
Learn more about Lt Sunnie at ellteesunnie.com.
🎤
Please join us on Tuesday, March 3rd, at 7:00pm, at @moonpalacebooks.bsky.social, for our next 5×5 Reading, featuring five fantastic artists: Rosetta Peters, Ashe Jaafaru, Cecily McMillan, Lester Batiste, and Lt. Sunnie
6/9
Lt. Sunnie’s artistry is a vibrant celebration of identity and radical joy—uplifting women’s voices and championing fierce individuality. Her unapologetically queer, Black, and big-bodied presence redefines the stage and invites everyone to celebrate their own story.
5/9
she continues to break barriers and inspire radical spirits everywhere. Every performance is a testament to her sharp skills as an entertainer—delivering raw honesty, outstanding movement, influential and heartfelt storytelling that speak to the transformative power of music and community.
4/9
multidisciplinary productions to collaborating with a renowned rap collective and gracing stages with an 11-piece band, Lt. Sunnie’s journey is marked by fearless creativity and relentless dedication. As an alum of esteemed programs like the Ordway GreenRoom Fellowship and TruArtSpeaks, …
3/9
and brought her commanding vocals to an 11-piece band on some of the nations biggest stages. Lt. Sunnie is celebrated for headlining her own acclaimed EP releases—Big Feelings and Who She Think She Is?!—and for captivating audiences at signature events nationwide!
From co-producing…
2/9
Photograph of Lt. Sunnie, a Black woman with medium brown skin and very long braided hair descending from both sides. In this photo she's wearing a leather-look top over white collared shirt, silver necklace, large earrings, and a huge smile.
Text slide repeating biographical information from post.
Text slide bearing words "For more: follow @reentrylab. better-things.org. reentrylab.org" and logos for the Minnesota State Arts Board, Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, and the Clean Water, Land & Legacy Amendment.
Flyer with text reading: “Better Things - a 5x5 reading for social change - the reading everybody will be talking about the next day. Moon Palace Books, 3032 Minnehaha Avenue, March 3rd, 2025, 7 pm.” Small photos of each of five readers, labeled by name: Rosetta Peters, Ashe Jaafaru, Cecily McMillan, Lester Batiste, and Lt. Sunnie.
Raised in Saint Paul, Minnesota’s historic Rondo neighborhood, Lt. Sunnie (she/her) is a powerhouse in the Midwest music scene with over a decade of experience. She has headlined major events across the region, delivered charged up halftime show performances, completed a milestone 10-stop tour,
1/9
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
8/8
Better Things is a series of events sponsored by @reentrylab.bsky.social, in partnership with Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop and Moon Palace Books. The ReEntry Lab is an organization working to connect writers and other artists leaving incarceration to a community that’s ready to receive them.
…followed by an open mic. Both reading and open mic will feature ASL interpretation.
Light refreshments will be served; masks are required at Moon Palace Books and are available on-site. This is a free event.
6/8
🎤
Please join us on Tuesday, March 3rd, at 7:00pm, at @moonpalacebooks.bsky.social, for our next 5×5 Reading, featuring five fantastic artists: Rosetta Peters, Ashe Jaafaru, Cecily McMillan, Lester Batiste, and Lt. Sunnie
5/8
Peak Press (2022), The Indianapolis Review (2023), and The Bitchin’ Kitsch (2023). In 2025, he received the BIPOC Emerging Writer award from Blue Earth Review. Lester’s debut poetry collection, Angel and Night’s Youngest, is forthcoming in 2026 with the Black Spring Press Group (UK).
4/8
his present on the Northside of Minneapolis. Lester's work has appeared in print in The Stone House Anthology (2014), the Southern Griot Journal (2012), Tulane Review (2017), A Garden of Black Joy (2020), and digitally in the Brushfire Literary and Arts Journal (2020), Hidden…
3/8
Influenced by Gwendolyn Brooks, Carl Sandburg, and Toni Morrison, Lester strives to weave traditional forms and techniques with the vibrancy of African American experience and speech. Rich details are enhanced by the musical tones from Lester’s childhood on the Southside of Chicago to…
2/8
Photograph of Lester Batiste, a Black man with dark skin, very short hair, and a trim beard and mustache. In this picture he's wearing a tan suit with pocket square, white shirt, gold watch, stud earrings, and two rings, and he's got a serious expression as he looks into the camera.
Text slide containing biographical information (repeated in text).
Text slide bearing words "For more: follow @reentrylab. better-things.org. reentrylab.org" and logos for the Minnesota State Arts Board, Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, and the Clean Water, Land & Legacy Amendment.
Flyer with text reading: “Better Things - a 5x5 reading for social change - the reading everybody will be talking about the next day. Moon Palace Books, 3032 Minnehaha Avenue, March 3rd, 2025, 7 pm.” Small photos of each of five readers, labeled by name: Rosetta Peters, Ashe Jaafaru, Cecily McMillan, Lester Batiste, and Lt. Sunnie.
Lester Batiste (he/him) is a savage writer in living color who writes for political, social, economic change and Black futures. Born in Chicago, IL, he holds an MFA from the University of Southern Maine's Stonecoast writing program, and an M.S.Ed. from the University of Pennsylvania.
1/8
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
8/8
Better Things is a series of events sponsored by the ReEntry Lab, in partnership with the Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop (MPWW) and Moon Palace Books. The ReEntry Lab is an organization working to connect writers and other artists leaving incarceration to a community that’s ready to receive them.
…followed by an open mic. Both reading and open mic will feature ASL interpretation.
Light refreshments will be served; masks are required at Moon Palace Books and are available on-site. This is a free event.
6/8
🎤
Please join us on Tuesday, March 3rd, at 7:00pm, at @moonpalacebooks.bsky.social, for our next 5×5 Reading, featuring five fantastic artists: Rosetta Peters, Ashe Jaafaru, Cecily McMillan, Lester Batiste, and Lt. Sunnie
5/8
She has also worked in electoral politics in roles from canvasser to campaign director, most recently serving as Communications & Outreach Coordinator for Rep. Leigh Finke’s successful campaign to become the first openly trans person elected to the MN State Capitol.
4/8
in 2016 by Nation Books.
For more than two decades, McMillan has been organizing actions and building organizations to promote racial and gender justice; to protect workers', immigrants', and students' rights; and to fight for queer liberation and against nuclear proliferation.
3/8
an ardent prisoner rights advocate, highlighting the connections between poverty and incarceration. McMillan's writing has appeared in The New York Times, Al Jazeera America, and The Huffington Post. Their memoir The Emancipation of Cecily McMillan was published…
2/8
