Protest Poetry, Rooftop Beats & Coptic Girlhood: Whatโs On in Toronto (July 10โ16)
This weekโs events celebrate rhythm, resistance, and reflection. From rooftop sets and musical debuts to book launches exploring identity, exile, and inherited memory, thereโs something for every mood.
If you know someone who loves Arabic culture, art, or community events in the Greater Toronto Area, consider sending them this newsletter or sharing khamsa.ca with them.
Here are 5 events worth checking out:
๐ Book Launch: When Genocide Wasnโt News: How Canadian media covered-up the destruction of Gaza
A powerful evening of conversation with journalists Martin Lukacs, Desmond Cole, and lawyer Dania Majid, discussing the newly published book exposing how Canadian media covered up the destruction of Gaza.
๐ Martin Lukacs, Desmond Cole, Dania Majid
๐ฌ English
๐๏ธ Thursday, July 10 | 7:00โ8:30 PM
๐ Centre for Social Innovation Annex โ Annex, 720 Bathurst St, Toronto, ON M5S 2R4
๐๏ธ Free โ Eventbrite
๐ฌ To a Land Unknown โ Canadian Premiere
A haunting new thriller from Palestinian filmmaker Mahdi Fleifel (A World Not Ours) makes its Canadian debut at TIFF Lightbox. To a Land Unknown follows two displaced cousins stranded in Athens as they scheme for a way out โ from scams to high-stakes deception โ in a gripping tale of exile, survival, and desperation. Loosely inspired by Ghassan Kanafaniโs Men in the Sun.
๐ Directed by Mahdi Fleifel
๐ฌ Palestinian Arabic, Greek, English
๐๏ธ Friday, July 11, 6:30โ8:15 pm & 9:30 โ 11:15 pm (More screenings listed below)
๐ TIFF Lightbox, 350 King St W, Toronto, ON M5V 3X5
๐๏ธ TIFF
๐ถ Moneka and Friends @ MixTO Festival
Experience the infectious energy of Ahmed Moneka as he blends Afro-Sufi traditions with Arabic folk, funk, soul, and jazz. This outdoor set features music from Kanzafula โ the first Canadian-Iraqi album to earn a Juno nomination.
๐ Ahmed Moneka and other artists
๐ฌ Iraqi Arabic / English
๐๏ธ Sunday, July 13 | 7:00 PM โ 8:00 PM
๐ Trillium Park โ 955 Lake Shore Blvd W, Toronto, ON M6K 3B9
๐๏ธ Free โ Instagram
๐ Book Launch โ Taslฤซm: We Are the Prophets by Carolyn Ramzy
Celebrate the launch of this bold poetry collection, which explores Coptic girlhood, diasporic memory, and the burden of religious inheritance. Carolyn Ramzy reads from her new book and joins Fady Shanouda in conversation.
๐ Carolyn Ramzy + Fady Shanouda
๐ฌ English
๐๏ธ Monday, July 14 | 7:00 PM โ 9:00 PM
๐ Another Story Bookshop โ 315 Roncesvalles Ave, Toronto, ON M6R 2M6
๐๏ธ Free โ Mawenzi House
๐ MEZAR โ Toronto Debut
Experience a night where ancestral sounds converge with futuristic sonic landscapes. MEZAR combines Sufi poetry, Algerian diwan rhythms, and Afro-oriental influences with contemporary composition and hypnotic sound design. Featuring Elsa Corgiรฉ and Chakib Kouidri, along with Toronto artists Devon Goping and Corey Weinberg.
๐ Presented by: Kunn Collective, in partnership with Keife Records, F360, Tapestry & Marsm
๐ฌ North African Arabic / Multilingual
๐๏ธ Tuesday, July 15 | 8:00โ11:00 PM
๐ Tapestry โ 224 Augusta Ave, Toronto, ON M5T 2L6
๐๏ธ Ticket Tailor