Smokii Sumac

Smokii Sumac is a Ktunaxa poet whose first book of poetry, you are enough: love poems for the end of the world was published in 2018 by Kegedonce Press.[1] In addition to writing, Sumac dedicates much of his work to Indigenous and LGBTQ communities.[2] He identifies as a two-spirit, trans masculine, "as an uncle and an auntie".[3] He currently lives in both Peterborough, Ontario and Ithaca, New York with his family and their dog.[1]

Sumac grew up in Invermere, British Columbia. He attended the David Thompson Secondary School. He has talked openly about his recovery from alcoholism and addiction.[3] He credits the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word in 2017 with inspiring him to begin writing poetry.[4]

His work has been published in Write Magazine, Electric City Magazine and Canadian Literature. you are enough has been favorably reviewed in publications including Muskrat Magazine[5] and Transmotion.[6] In 2017 the Indigenous Voices Award was presented to Sumac for his unpublished poetry including his #haikuaday, which he posted on social media.[7] He has performed at various events and venues including the Queer Arts Festival in 2018 and PoetryNOW: 11th Annual Battle of the Bards in 2019. Currently, Smokii Sumac is a PhD Candidate in Indigenous Studies at Trent University, where he is researching "coming home" stories from a Ktunaxa adoptee and two-spirit perspective.[8]