Edition xii is here and Lorde doesn't it seem like change is EVERYWHERE! my days as a shop girl at an Andersonville boutique have ended and i've kicked off what i am calling my retirement (from retail) with a roaring six hundred plus audience at Drag King DSM. #blessed As always i hope ya'll enjoy 'em. and don't forget to explore a lilttle. go off roading and click and hover! Thank you for reading.
hey,
This is a great place to tell your story and give people more insight into who you are, what you do, and why it’s all about you.
ed. xii vol. i
May 12, 2018
i hope that as a teacher i create an atmosphere conducive to transformation and exploration. i hope to encourage vulnerability and expansion. pushing the boundaries of what you think your body is physically capable. i hope that at the end of an 8 week session of movement/burlesque that you leave with a deeply planted seed of self love.
post performance w/ my burly q class!
i am enough
i am so proud of these bold women who on May 12th and 19th took the stage and filled the room with their beautiful energy! Ya'll had me shook! THANK YOU!!!!
let's
my awe-inspiring students!
on teaching...
for those of ya'll that need a reminder...
Go Mary!
taken from edition iii of The Brown Pages!
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'cause i came of age in a land where whites were worn with the greatest of reverence. ignoring the scent of bleach hugs.
'cause we’ve assigned meanings to hues.
'cause there was a time where brown bags were held up to brown skins. determining the worth of beings.
the hue of white. the absence of color. clean palate. we paint our galleries, museums, chic modern minimalist designed rooms. floor boards. white.
religions done their rituals in white.
‘cause i like my whites sullied.
i see brown paper and burlap as a working folks material, a piece of my linage.
'cause i am always looking for the stain. the smear of pressed perfection. the humanity.
the brown pages 'cause i am working on retraining my eyes. challenging my brain to register brown in any context in which color is used to cleanse my perception.
'cause brown paper is gentle to our earth.
'cause black women are continuing to disappear in Chicago's Westside and beyond.
'cause i was born po’ but was taught that having little meant nothing to worth.
'cause i have seen brown skinned folks build new worlds out of nothing but breath and imagination. and thrive.
'cause i believe queen simone when she sang.
it takes a lot for me to break character. On Saturday June 9th all it took was the instant ROAR from the MASSIVE Wooly's audience. i felt the barriers of po'chop drop and what felt like a goofy ass smile spread across my face. The crowd roared again once they heard Audre 3000's voice count in "Hey Ya!" it has been awhile since i've allowed myself the freedom of a joy-filled-non-narrative driven act. Let me tell you, I SHOOK IT LIKE A Polaroid picture! Drag King DSM was an amazing experience. be on the look out for more photos + a recap video in an upcoming edition of The Brown Pages.
Art Is Bonfire is a monthly ritual for the people and poets of summer time Chi. Hosted by Pyro Poet Tiff Beatty, artists and organizers from across the city gather around a fire to share, connect, and heal. The fire is the cypher. Power to the people.
Register if you would you like to contribute poetry, music, food, time, somethin to burn!
Check out Art is Bonfire this summer. July 29, August 26 & Sept 23 @ Promontory Point Park!