New York, NY -- (ReleaseWire) -- 06/24/2010 -- The Intercultural Alliance of Artists & Scholars, Inc. (The IAAS) announced today that its relaunch spring issue of phati’tude Literary Magazine (PLM) has been published and will be available for purchase as of July 15, 2010.

The issue, titled Multiculturalism: In Search of a New Perspective, focuses on the issues of diversity and inclusion as it relates to writer’s experiences in a more global universe. “Our relaunch turned out to be even more amazing than we anticipated,” said Gabrielle David, Founder and Executive Director. “The internet connected us to an extensive mix of writers from around the world. Submissions came pouring in not only from coast to coast in the U.S. and Canada, but also from voices as far off as The U.K., Japan, New Zealand and Australia. We are very impressed with the quality of the writing – it is truly outstanding. We’re very proud to bring this level of work to the general public and happy to see that there is as much, if not greater, interest in, and need for, this type of publication.”

Featured in the issue are both emerging and acclaimed writers such as: Sherman Alexie, Meena Alexander, Marie Arana, Meliza Bañales, Oscar Bermeo, Tara Betts, Aya de León, Heid Erdrich, Lawson Fusao Inada, A. Robert Lee, Tony Medina, Aram Saroyan and Timothy Liu.

Publishing on a quarterly basis, phati’tude Literary Magazine is a multicultural publication with a special focus in, though not exclusively devoted to, writers of African, Hispanic/Latino, Native American and Asian descent, seeking to provide a forum for quality works with a diverse voice. It is currently the only literary magazine available as an e-book, as well as print-on-demand through createspace.com and amazon.com.

The organization is hosting a premiere party at the Bowery Poetry Club on Friday, July 9, 2010, from 7pm to 9:30pm. The literary event, open to the general public, will feature poetry readings, video screenings and other performances. The $5 Admission will be donated to the Bowery Arts and Sciences, the non-profit arm of the Bowery Poetry Club. Details are available on both websites: http://www.phatitude.org and http://www.bowerypoetryclub.com.

“We encourage lovers of the written word to attend the event, purchase the book ($18 printed, $10 e-book), visit the phati’tude website, make a donation and spread the word to others as a way of supporting contemporary poetry and literature,” added Michelle Aragón, Director, Marketing & Communications. “We want everyone to catch phati’tude and pass it on!”

ABOUT PHATI’TUDE
In 1997 looking to fill an obvious gap, founder Gabrielle David published phati’tude, a literary magazine that challenged a canon based on a European white male model that excluded works by women, gays and lesbians, Native American, and of African, Hispanic/Latino and Asian descent. Originally published as a monthly it will now be published quarterly.

ABOUT THE IAAS
The Intercultural Alliance of Artists & Scholars, Inc. (IAAS) is a New York-based nonprofit organization founded in 2000 to foster understanding of and respect for cultural diversity through literature and media literacy. To reach the broadest audience possible, the IAAS collaborates with artists, scholars and community organizations to advance the art of writing as essential to a good education and to promote literary talent and achievement.

Over the past ten years, the IAAS has built an enviable reputation for staging exciting and innovative literary programs that engage the public with issues and ideas from differing perspectives. The IAAS Board remains committed to introducing new and diverse literatures and multicultural literary resources into the public discourse with initiatives such as phati'tude Programs, 2Leaf Press and LitWiki.org.

PRESS RELEASE CONTACT
Michelle Aragón - Director, Marketing & Communications
maragon@theiaas.org
http://www.theiass.org // http://www.phatitude.org