The power of spoken word

When the philosophy department sponsored an event April 17 that featured performance poetry, Professor Sarah Hoagland saw it as an opportunity to "encourage exploration of spoken word as a form of doing philosophy." The stated mission of Performers Or Writers for Women On Women's Issues (POW-WOW), is to increase the visibility of women artists, especially those of color. It is a safe space that helps foster social change, gender consciousness and political awareness.

POW-WOW, Inc. was founded in 2001 by C.C. Carter, a Chicago native who has garnered national acclaim in the performance poetry scene. She has participated in hundreds of women's music festivals, including the Michigan Womyn's Festival, and has won numerous poetry slams. Her work and activism led her to being inducted into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame.

She recently finished as Project Manager for the Chicago Foundation for Women's Safe State Initiative - Making Illinois the Safest State for Women and Girls. Currently, she is the Director of community, cultural and legal programs for the Center on Halsted. It was at a Town Hall meeting last year where I had the chance to watch POW-WOW regular e nina jay perform.

Her powerful poetry tackles violence, sexual abuse and trauma with a raw sincerity. More than just survival, her work embraces the resilience and strength of a woman's spirit. I first encountered her work when she came to Dr. Sarah Hoagland's class a couple of years ago. Through her poetry, she engaged our class in a frank discussion about the pervasiveness of violence against women and how breaking the silence then becomes an act of resistance.

Nikki Patin is yet another talented performer that has been a part of POW-WOW. She is a veteran of the Chicago poetry scene and has taught dozens of workshops at high schools, colleges, and universities on performance poetry, sexual assault prevention and LGBT issues. She designed, published and distributed a book of poems on body image entitled "Phat Girl," and she also produced and directed her first one-woman show, "Off Inside My Head."

Her talent led her to being featured on the fourth season of HBO's Def Poetry Jam. In 2006, she was voted one of the 30 under 30 most influential LGBTA people in Chicago by the Windy City Times. Also, she took the gold medal in the Gay Games International LGBT poetry slam.

POW-WOW has hosted local, national, and international poets. Most notably, Tony Award Winner Staceyann Chin, who was recently featured on Oprah. Her memoir, The Otherside of Paradise, is scheduled to come out later this year.

POW-WOW programs include Youth Speak writing workshops, performances between women in the LGBT community and straight allies, and Men for Women, where male writers tackle misogynistic issues presented in hip hop and rap music through writing workshops. POW-WOW takes place every Tuesday night at Lee's Unleaded Blues Club, located at 7401 S. South Chicago. Doors open at 7 p.m. and admission is $5. For further information please visit www.powwowchicago.org