Posthaste is a running feature of Caustic Frolic that offers the space for members of our XE community to engage creatively and critically with the ever-changing challenges of our world. As an interdisciplinary journal invested in social change, we believe deeply in the power of art and thought to address topics such as: the COVID-19 Pandemic, racial tensions and the Black Lives Matter Movement, gender inequity, and so much more. In response to specific events, as well as broader institutional problems, Posthaste will offer prompts that XE writers, artists, and academics can respond to in whatever fashion they choose. We encourage submissions to range in genre, style, and length. Flash stories, poetry, essays, photography, art, films, and more, are all welcome. All submissions should be sent to causticfrolic@gmail.com.
We want Posthaste to function as a living document that captures the XE community’s artistic reactions to the world around us. As the title of this feature suggests, we want to see and publish work that is responding to societal issues in real time. Submissions should be raw and charged with emotion, perhaps even a bit messy. Above all, we hope Posthaste fosters continual and purposeful discussion within the XE community. Together, our ideas and voices will be heard.
Israel-Hamas war
Prompt: How Are You Doing?
The Israel-Hamas war has been brutal, tragic, and on many levels, sickening. Halfway across the world, as we reckon with the horrors of violence, we find ourselves in a strange position of discomfort and dissension with our loved ones and neighbors. Only by keeping our lines of communication open can we tackle the unique challenges of this moment together.
Black Lives Matter
Prompt: Black Lives Matter
The recent murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery have sparked justified rage throughout the country and world. While their tragic deaths are emblematic of centuries-old suffering and trauma, something about these current protests feels different. Quoted in an article in The New York Times, civil rights organizer Alicia Garza spoke of the recent shift in attention towards the Black Lives Matter Movement: “Seven years ago, we were treated like we were too radical, too out of the bounds of what is possible…and now, countless lives later, it’s finally seen as relevant.” Our country, she says, has reached “its boiling point.” In response to Garza’s words, we want you to reflect on the meaning and impact of this powerful wave of civil rights activism in the U.S.
COVID-19 Pandemic
Prompt: Where Are You?
In these times of social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic, the word “boundaries” has taken on a whole new meaning. Whether it’s a room, an apartment, a house, a city, or a state of mind, we want to you to describe and depict the space you’re inhabiting. We hope your interpretations and answers will be broad, experimental, and of diverse genre and media.