A Spell to Grow a Garden
by Arsimmer McCoy"A Spell to Grow A Garden" by Arsimmer McCoy is a layered and evocative poem that uses the act of gardening as both a literal and metaphorical framework to explore themes of healing, ancestral connection, and environmental justice. At its core, the poem is a meditation on restoration—how to tend to oneself and one's community in the face of historical trauma and displacement. McCoy invokes the language of ritual and sacred practice by framing the poem as a "spell," blending spirituality with the physical act of cultivating land. The garden here symbolizes more than a patch of earth; it becomes a site of memory, resistance, and rebirth. Through this lens, the garden is where Black identity and the histories of the Black South are nurtured and re-rooted. The poem’s rich imagery connects readers to the texture of the soil, the care needed to grow something sustainable, and the quiet resilience inherent in acts of cultivation.
McCoy often ties her environmental advocacy into her poetry, and this work is no exception — it speaks to the deep relationship between Black communities and land, touching on legacies of care, dispossession, and reclamation. Ultimately, "A Spell to Grow A Garden" is a spiritual guide and a cultural call to action, urging readers to engage in the patient labor of growing and preserving gardens, histories, communities, and futures.
Corey Davis and Arsimmer McCoy are longtime collaborative partners and colleagues because they deeply commit to liberation, cultural memory, and community care. Both rooted in Black Southern and diasporic experiences, their partnership is born from a shared belief that art and leadership are inseparable tools for activism and healing.
Through Maven Leadership Collective, Corey nurtures the leadership of Black and Brown LGBTQ+ changemakers, building ecosystems where marginalized communities can thrive. Arsimmer, through her poetry and interdisciplinary practice, tends to the emotional and spiritual landscapes of these same communities, invoking land, ancestry, and Black storytelling as instruments of resistance and reclamation.
Their collaboration is intimate — grounded in trust, a shared love for Black people, and a responsibility to future generations. Together, they create spaces where vulnerability meets strategy: a poem might spark a movement and where leadership feels like home.
Their projects are designed to honor the dignity of their communities, integrating cultural organizing with creative practices that challenge systems, hold space for grief and joy, and push for structural change across South Florida and beyond.
Bio:
Arsimmer McCoy is a poet, interdisciplinary artist, educator, and cultural strategist whose work explores the intersections of identity, memory, and the Black South. A native of Carol City, Florida, McCoy uses poetry, performance, and community-centered storytelling to foster dialogue and connection. She receives the 2024 Marjory Stoneman Douglas Poetry Award and the 2025 Arts and Environment Award from the Arts and Business Council of Miami-Dade County, honoring her dedication to environmental justice and cultural preservation.McCoy has been an artist-in-residence with the Atlantic Center for the Arts, Locust Projects, Artist-in-Residence-in-the-Everglades, and Bakehouse Art Complex, merging poetry with interdisciplinary practices and public engagement. Her work has taken her to global stages, performing and collaborating in Leeds, England (Leeds Young Authors), Bangkok, Thailand (Lyrical Lunacy), Accra, Ghana (The Chale Wote Festival), The Dominican Republic (EdgeZones Performance Art Festival), and Venice, Italy, where she participated in the Venice Biennale’s European Cultural Center Personal Structures exhibition. She is the founder of The Carol City Museum, a developing cultural space dedicated to preserving the history and creative legacy of Carol City. McCoy’s work amplifies Black storytelling while weaving together art, ecology, and community healing in South Florida and internationally.
Listen to A Spell To Grow A Garden Here
Maven Leadership Collective
Maven Leadership Collective is a social impact ideas lab for queer and trans leaders of color and our allies who shift culture, unlock creativity, and reimagine antidotes to failing systems. Maven has an incubator and residency for artists, produces and commissions new work, and builds capacity for cultural institutions. We are an increasingly vital, free community resource that contributes new ideas, immersive learning experiences, and welcoming health opportunities for grassroots leaders in the arts, health equity, civic engagement, and economic independence. Maven creates ecosystems of support for our leaders to build just communities with greater ease, agency, and belonging. Maven has nourished greater social expressions of civic care and unlocked professional creativity in South Florida since 2016 with ongoing offerings in Orlando, Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill and New York.
Bio:
Corey Davis (he/they) is founder & creative director of Maven Leadership Collective. He mobilizes resources and professional development support to provide respite and fortification for queer and trans social impact leaders of color and allies who shift culture, unlock creativity, and reimagine more just collective futures. Maven operates in Florida, North Carolina, and New York. Maven has an incubator and residency for artists, produces and commissions new work, and builds capacity for cultural institutions. He graduated from the University of Maryland at College Park with a BA in Journalism and earned an MPA in Nonprofit Management from The George Washington University. Corey serves as board treasurer for Pioneer Winter Collective, an intergenerational and physically integrated dance-theater company.
See Maven Leaders In Print Here
For more information:
IG: @mccoy_arsimmer
Website: www.arsimmermccoy.com/
IG: @mavenleaders
Website: www.mavenleadership.org/
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