Hummingbird Mag is committed to fighting for equity and justice.
Whether it be through protesting, fundraising, voting, petitioning, or supporting community outreach and the abolishment of the police, we believe wholeheartedly that Black lives matter. We will be working toward being an actively anti-racist platform that promotes and elevates diverse voices. To kickstart this initiative, we are launching the Hummingbird’s fundraising team; a permanent feature of the Mag that represents our shared values through various philanthropic causes.
Hummingbird Mag’s team is a group of excited, youthful, and knowledgeable contributors with a shared love for great music and social justice. We started Hummingbird in May 2020 with the goal of spreading happiness and fresh, fun music. However, in light of the ongoing government-sanctioned violence against Black people in this country, we each have the impetus to educate ourselves, call out racism and any other form of oppression wherever and whenever we see it, and most importantly, to act now.
With this in mind, Hummingbird has decided to use our platform to support the Black community and organizations across the country fighting for the rights of Black individuals and communities.
Over the next few weeks, we will hold a number of fundraising efforts with all proceeds going to organizations supporting Black trans folks, helping peaceful protesters make bail, and Covid-19 relief funds for the communities of color most affected. All proceeds will go to two funds: the Trans Women of Color Collective and Color of Change.
Not only will donating to these remarkable organizations provide them with the ongoing support they require, but your donations will earn you some Hummingbird team selected tunes. $10 is the baseline for two playlists: one dedicated to social justice-minded music that’s come in the past few weeks, as well as a personalized 10-song playlist. And for every additional $5, we’ll add another ten songs to your uniquely curated playlist. Just send thehummingbirdmag@gmail.com a receipt of your donation or a screenshot of a Venmo transfer to @andrew_edds, as well as some musical tastes, preferences, and inspirations, and you’ll soon receive plenty of new songs to bump, provided by your favorite music blog!
Additionally, Hummingbird staff have been attending protests and have captured some very powerful moments. We have turned some of these astonishing images into posters, which we’ll be selling for a donation of $22 plus shipping costs. Just email us (thehummingbirdmag@gmail.com) or DM us on Instagram (@hummingbird.mag) and we will arrange for your delivery! Stay updated with the site for more information soon!
In conjunction with our fundraising campaign, Hummingbird has organized a poetry contest and a remote concert to highlight black voices while raising money for these organizations. More information below!
NECTAR POETRY
NECTAR POETRY is a new online poetry journal, presented by Hummingbird Magazine. This project grew out of a necessity to create more space for BIPOC poets, particularly Black poets. For our inaugural issue, we are hosting a contest to help raise funds for Color of Change and The Trans Women of Color Collective.
Submission Details:
- Submit 1-5 unpublished poems on any subject in any style up to a maximum of 10 pages per entry. Please submit multiple poems in one document. Please submit multiple poems in one document as a .pdf, .doc(x), or .rtf.
- We especially encourage BIPOC poets to submit — your work will take priority in our consideration. However, we still welcome all anti-racist work however you identify.
- Include a short third-person bio (ft. information like your name, previous publication credits/awards, social media handles)
- Simultaneous submissions welcome. Please notify us immediately of publication elsewhere by responding to the email used for your initial submission.
- We will do our best to ensure a fast turnaround. We hope to return to you with a decision and any feedback within a week of submission. Please reach out if you have not heard back by then.
- Submission fee of $3. This fee will be waived for Black poets. This may be paid as followed:
- Send $3 to @raynfx on Venmo. All funds raised with this method will be used to pay contributors.
- Send $3 to COLOR OF CHANGE or TRANS WOMEN OF COLOR COLLECTIVE, and include a copy of your receipt with your submission (make sure the amount and date are visible!).
- Multiple entries allowed with payment of additional submission fees (e.g. $6 = up to 10 poems for consideration).
- For donating additional $ (through either method), we will offer you feedback as follows:
- submission fee + $2 = feedback on 1 poem
- submission fee + $5 = feedback on 3 poems
- submission fee + $7 = feedback on all 5 poems
- TIP JAR: We will also accept any additional donations! These will go toward paying contributors! (@raynfx on Venmo)
- The Contest closes on July 27th
- If you have any questions, you can also reach us at nectarpoetry@gmail.com, j_tignor@coloradocollege.edu, or r_fox@coloradocollege.edu
Please submit using our Google Form!
We ask that you do not publish any accepted poems elsewhere before they appear in NECTAR POETRY. All rights revert back to the author upon publication. If your poem is published elsewhere (e.g. chapbooks, anthologies) in the future, we kindly request that you credit NECTAR POETRY for initial publication (and also congratulations!).
Selected winners will have their poems published in the inaugural issue of NECTAR POETRY. Winners may also elect to contribute their prize money to either Color of Change or The Trans Women of Color Collective. Additionally, winners will be invited to appear in Hummingbird Magazine’s Instagram Live fundraiser event in a few weeks to read their poems.
Remote Concert On August 1
On August 1st, Hummingbird Mag will be going live on Instagram to host a remote concert. Not only will this concert include performances from the winners of the NECTAR POETRY contest, but there will be several artists performing for streamers. The remote concert will be donation focused with all proceeds going to Color of Change and The Trans Women of Color Collective, as well as to our performers.
It will be a great opportunity to experience these talented artists, poets, and creators who live from their spaces to ours all while supporting a shared cause. There will be more information coming out soon!
DM us on our socials or email us at thehummingbirdmag@gmail.com with any questions, thoughts, or feedback.
This is by no means a solution, but a start to something that we hope will be an ongoing conversation among our followers and the nation at large.
hummingbird mag 