We are excited to invite the public to an open-ended conversation with Lexington-based Comanche author, musician, and cultural critic Ben Honea, who will address what it means to be a Native American writer within the current creative ecology.

He will dig into his own experiences navigating issues surrounding contemporary indigeneity within the cultural sphere, such as the hierarchies of Native authenticity (are you Native enough?), the slippery boundaries of appropriation (who is allowed to do what?), and the internal and external expectations of positioning a creative practice (are you a Native American artist, or an artist who happens to be Native American?).

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Ben Honea received his MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Kentucky and his BA from the University of Texas at Arlington. His work focuses on contemporary Native American culture, and examines the discrepancies between the urban and rural, tradition versus modernity, racial inequities from both within and outside the culture, and the future of indigenous peoples.