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This slam poem is one of my favorites I've seen. FreeQuency delivers her words with such confidence that you want to listen to her speak. She writes to white people, telling them everything they're doing wrong as a society. She speaks of her history, of the background in which she has come from, and how proud white people have been capitalizing on their pain for centuries. "Saying you don't see race, is the racist dribble I hope you choke on. Telling me, that you respect me, but don't see my color, is like you having to pretend I'm not black in order to respect me." It seems as though this is such a constant theme in today's world. We act as though we don't "see color," to try and say that if we don't see those things, then there's no reason to hate. But instead we are blind to the words we use. "Colorblind" or not, a person is a person, and we shouldn't have to make them invisible for us to see that. FreeQuency continues on with another great point; "Dear white people, stop using black on black crime as a reason we shouldn't be outraged by the murder of black people by white cops. If a black person kills a black person, they will go to jail, and that is what we call justice. If a white cop kills a black person, they will get paid leave, and that is what we call justice!" It's so hard to recognize that our culture has snuck racism into everything we do or say. Our justice system is so morally incorrect that, "Apparently, justice is when a black body dies." It's so frustrating that we lack so much acceptance of a community, but are so reluctant to sit back and watch it happen, continuously. Crime involved only with black people, results in jail time. Crime involved between a white person and a minority, results in the minority being the one at fault. And, the white person, is given help for such a stressful situation that they, without a doubt, could never have caused. It seems that justice only comes around in the daytime because it's afraid of the dark. How ironic is that?

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Individual World Poetry Slam Finals 2015 - FreeQuency "Dear White People"

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FreeQuency performing at the Individual World Poetry Slam Finals in Washington, D.C. Mwende "FreeQuency" Katwiwa is a Kenyan born, New Orleans based spoken word artist, organizer and youth worker. Known for her social justice work and poetry, FreeQuency has been described as 'challenging', 'dynamic', and it has been said on numerous occasions that "the room isn't the same after hearing FreeQuency spit".

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By definition, Racial profiling is; "a law enforcement and security agency practice that encourages officers to stop, search, and investigate people based on race, ethnicity, nationality, or religion. While racial profiling is most commonly committed against ethnic minorities, many instances of racial profiling occur in reaction to specific crimes, making any racial or cultural group subject to more intensive scrutiny by the authorities.
I don't know how, at this day and age that our justice system can let this happen. It is creul and should not happen.

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This slam poem is very well spoken. Rudy shares his view on why People of Color don't need to go volcano surfing to get an adrenaline rush, they don't need to do anything to put their life in any more danger than they have to because he says being black is the most dangerous sport there is. When he got pulled over for the first time at the age of 18, he recalls the encounter with the officer being so significantly stressful, and that his voice trembled. "He called me son, and I thought, that's an interesting way of pronouncing boy." He continues "He asked for my license. Registration. Wants to know what I'm doing in this neighborhood. If the car is stolen. If I have any drugs". Before hearing what his experience was like, it was already so predictable how he'd be treated, and that's the worst part. He tells his audience that he had to hold his voice carefully because he knew if he said something wrong that, "This much melanin, a smart mouth, that uniform; is a plot line to a film that could easily end in a chalk outlined baptism." It is disheartening to hear how frightened a person can be by a cop who is supposed to be the one who makes you feel safe. People of color are targeted because of stereotypes. It seems as though many cases of racism involve some sort of stereotype that goes along with a hatred, or a want for separation. Just because of their skin color. Our history as Americans has remained the same as it always has been, we still belittle the minorities because, we've done so many things to make them feel like they are unequal. Even after hundreds of years, we still can't wrap our heads around accepting a human for being a human. We have continued to believe what people tell us, however untrue it may be.

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Rudy Francisco - "Adrenaline Rush" (Button Live)

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Subscribe to Button! New video daily: http://bit.ly/buttonpoetry Minnesota folks! Don't miss Button Poetry Live: http://on.fb.me/1NIPy8q Every first Monday at CAMP Bar in downtown Saint Paul. Performing at the Button Poetry Live Grand Opening. Follow Button on Facebook: http://on.fb.me/SG5Xm0 About Button: Button Poetry is committed to developing a coherent and effective system of production, distribution, promotion and fundraising for spoken word and performance poetry.

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Ta-Nehisi Coates on words that don't belong to everyone | We Were Eight Years In Power Book Tour

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What's CODE SWITCH? It's the fearless conversations about race that you've been waiting for. Hosted by journalists of color, our podcast tackles the subject of race with empathy and humor. We explore how race affects every part of society - from politics and pop culture to history, food and everything in between.

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Rich Benjamin: My road trip through the whitest towns in America

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As America becomes more and more multicultural, Rich Benjamin noticed a phenomenon: Some communities were actually getting less diverse. So he got out a map, found the whitest towns in the USA -- and moved in. In this funny, honest, human talk, he shares what he learned as a black man in Whitopia.

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Alex Dang - "What Kind Of Asian Are You?"

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https://www.SlamFind.com is a simple yet powerful platform for you to find live spoken word venues near you and watch slam poetry performance videos from around the world Connect with Alex on Facebook: Alex Dang Poetry https://www.facebook.com/alexdangpoetry Filmed at Portland Poetry Slam Finals in Portland OR https://www.facebook.com/portlandpoetry

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The poem, Gate A-4 sends a powerful message of the necessary kindness that should be given to people, even if you have just met them. In the poem, a Palistinian woman had been wailing on the floor. Because, even though she had been told that her flight was being delayed, she couldn't understand what the flight attendants were saying.  Naomi Shihab Nye brings the woman to her feet by communicating with her in Arabic, and relieves her worries of being unable to get home. They began talking more, and started calling relatives of their families, only to realize that they have mutual family friends. The woman pulled out traditional homemade cookies and offered them to other women in the airport. They all  accepted the delicious treats with no question, yet answered with smiling faces. The acceptance that was shown in this poem was with more than just with the cookies. Naomi made a choice to help, even when she knew she didn't have to. It is easy to say anyone would have done that if put into the situation, yet easier to say that they wouldn't have. Many people today would have stood there watching the whole thing play out, with no regard to help, simply because they didn't know who they were helping. This is shown in  many race related situations. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is another example of the willingness to help someone of no relation to you. They both undergo a journey of helping one another find their own freedoms, even though they did not have to. It was an especially unique situation due to the fact of the segregation of their race at the time. However, they chose to eliminate that factor in order to acheive their goals. A certain type of person is able to look at a society compiled of differences, and be proud to share them. As Naomi says in her last few lines,
"And I looked around that gate of late and weary ones and I thought, This
is the world I want to live in. The shared world. Not a single person in that
gate—once the crying of confusion stopped—seemed apprehensive about
any other person. They took the cookies. I wanted to hug all those otherwomen, too.
This can still happen anywhere. Not everything is lost."
Not all people are able to do this. The ones who are, however, should be praised for their conscious decisions to be kind to one another, even if it means never knowing them before.

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User account The Academy of American Poets is the largest membership-based nonprofit organization fostering an appreciation for contemporary poetry and supporting American poets.

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Ta-Nehisi Coates just explained why white people shouldn’t use the n-word in the perfect way

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Ta-Nehisi Coates just explained why white people shouldn’t use the n-word in the perfect way

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When a caucasion, female student asked what to do when you're listening to a rap song and the n-word comes up, Coates uses relatable humor to answer her, and many other white folk asking the same question. He brings up examples using his father, the LGBTQ community, his wife and her friend, as well of one of his good buddies. First, he states that words don't have meaning if they have no context. He would not call his dad Billy, even though the people his dad grew up with called him that. He would not shout "faggot" while being with a person of the LGBTQ community, he would not say the word "bitch" even though his wife and her friend call eachother that, and finally, even though his white friend refers to his cabin as the "White-Trash Cabin", he would never say that. And he wouldn't say any of these things, whether he was, or was not with, these specific people. It's simply because he knows he doesn't have the right to use that word unless he's apart of that community. There is a set boundary between the black community and all other communites when it comes to the n-word, yet it is often overstepped by white people. One reason that Ta-Nehisi describes is that white people feel as though they are guarunteed anything they want, because they assume everything belongs to them. It's not that caucasions are told this, however it has been engrained in our society. It has made us feel as though if we don't get to do something, then it's racist against us. However, when he states that everytime a white person hears the n-word in a song, it's just a sliver of what a black persons life is like. Instead of only being unable to use one word, they look at other people and see them constantly doing things, they're unable to do.

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"I want to be judged, not by the color of my skin. I want to be judged by the content of my character, and most of all; the calibar of my competance." Oj says it all here, he didn't want to be considered anything else, except for who he was as a person. He didn't want to feel as though he had to be apart of a race to have character. He wanted to legitimize himself, without being labeled with something, such as race, that shouldn't have a part in who he was. Yet, after saying that, everything changed because of his court case.  His fame was rumored to have helped him when the police chase occurred, or else it would have been more brutal. His home was redecorated by the defense team in order to please the, all black, jury and help him win the case. Originally, O.J. portayed a large collection of pictures he had with his many caucasion friends right when you walked up the stairwell in his home. The team put up portraits of Norman Rockwell and Ruby Bridges, of Desegregating the School, and The Problem We All Live With. The pictures all came from Johnny Cockman's office, and were supposed to "make him blacker". His whole persona was supposed to make him feel better about himself, he had ambitions to be who he was. He didn't care about anything, but himself and his ego. A documentary was created called O.J. made America to signify all of that. To show people who he was, and that he was going to do whatever he wanted to do. He wanted to live in a white society, not to be white but to be in a world with the priveleges it holds. When asked how to interpret the title of the documentary, Ezra Eddelman said that it was a story bigger than O.J., and it was about his relationship with his country and how he grew up in it. The story of the man himself, and the things the tale touches upon, like race and being a celebrity, was so profound and uniquely American. He decided that if people were so fascinated by his trial, that he should call it O.J. Made America, when in fact, America made O.J..

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This short story by Langsten Hughes is a peculiar reflection on how people can say they love someone, yet still use them for their own good. The Carraway's, Michael and Anne, treated their slave, Luther with a disrespect, so unusual, that even they couldn't understand how wrong they were. "...they went in for the Art of Negroes—the dancing that had such jungle life about it, the songs that were so simple and fervent, the poetry that was so direct, so real. They never tried to influence that art, they only bought it and raved over it, and copied it. For they were artists, too..Anne burst out, 'You know, I think I'd like to paint you.'

Michael said, 'Oh, I say now, that would be lovely! He's so utterly Negro.'" However confusing this quote may be, when thought about, it is destructive. The two, very wealthy people hired an African American, for the purpose of painting and making music inspired, not by him, but his ancestors, and his culture. But, Anne said that, "He is the jungle", and that he had a black, black face that was most effective on oil canvas. So, she just had to have him sit down for hours so that she could paint him. However, he always dozed off when this happened, and he "was an adorable Negro" when he fell asleep. Anne could stare at him leisurely then, and paint "The Sleeping Negro". How funny, that him being black was so inconvienent to be when he was awake, but so convienient for her to look at while he was sleeping.
"One day she decided to paint him nude, or at least half nude. A slave picture, that's what she would do. The market at New Orleans for a background. And call it 'The Boy on the Block'... She wanted to paint him now representing to the full the soul and sorrow of his people. She wanted to paint him as a slave about to be sold. And since slaves in warm climates had no clothes, would he please take off his shirt."
This time, when she looked at him, he wasn't adorable. This time, with her paint brush in hand, he was a slave, and oh how adorable it was for her to choose that. How adorable it was for her to paint a person, and see property. I guess art is funny that way, the artist sees one thing, and you see it entirely different. And since racists are often diguised, would she please take off her mask.
The short story indicated a lot whitesplaining. Meaning, the couple spoke of Luther as if he was everything to do with the African American culture. They marginalized him, and talked about him as if they knew more about the culture he came from, than he did. They pretended to be so accepting, that their supremecy was a surprise even to them.
It's devastating to know People of Color experience this everyday. They're shamed, or judged, based on what they look like. They're generalized into an entire culture, based on the pigment of their skin because that's what our society is ruled by. And, lately, people are more offended by being called a racist, than by actually being one.

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Ted Talk: My Road Trip Through the Whitest Towns In America.  

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Ted Talk: My Road Trip Through the Whitest Towns In America.  

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Here are some quotes that sum up this Ted Talk perfectly:
1.   "I lived in Whitopia as a resident, not as a visitor."
2.    "I counted more Confederate Flags than black people. In North Idaho, I found Confederate flag on keychains, on cellphone paraphernalia, and on cars."
3.   "Abe, an arian, saddled up next to me, slapped my knee and said 'Hey Rich, I just want you to know one thing; we are not white supremacists, we are white separatists. We don't think we're better than you. We just want to be away from you."
4.   "It is possible for people to be in Whitopia, not for racist reasons. Though, it has racist outcomes."
5.   "America is as, residentially and educationally, segregated today, as it was in 1970."
6.    "It is a devasting irony; how we have gone forward as individuals, but backwards as communities."
Racism is still present in today's world, just as much as it used to be. We have founded a society that has normalized the way we see things as communities. Rich discusses the humor of our society and how weird it is that we can see that racism is immoral, yet are blinded by the communities in which we live. We justify our actions based on how well we are able to blend with other people just like us. Our words get twisted and people think of ways around injustice. If we continue to hide in cities filled with the race we identify with, then there's no way for people to begin accepting, learning, or understanding people of other backgrounds. There's no positive way to put it, but if we as a society, continue to put boarders around races, then all we are doing is separating ourselves futher. How can we, as Americans, living in a country full of different cultures, expect to be called the "United" States of America if all we are doing is dissesmbling our identity.

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Slam poetry is a way of expressing thoughts through words that need to be spoken. The beauty of it is the way that people's body language looks, and how it makes you feel to see them emotionally exhaust the things they have concealed. Alex Dang does slam poetry justice by making pain that he, visually and verbally, shows his audience, satyrical. Dang describes a situation in which a man asks him the question; "What kind of Asian are you?". He smiles, laughs, and replies, "What kind of Asian do you expect me to be? Because any way you slice that egg roll, I'm still pretty much whatever you want to see." He creates a joke out of it, but an underlying tragedy rises. He makes the racism comical, because honestly, it is. Racism is a joke, with a different punch line every time. However, the donouement is all in the same. Throughout the entire slam poem, he relates himself to all of the stereotypes people have, almost, challenged him to be like; "a Fareast stereotype: Awkward math genius, cold and calculated Kung-Fu Expert, assistant to "Dr.Jones you crazy!" He continues, "You want me to drive? How so? I can give you Tokyo Drift, Jeremy Lin Mario Cart, Tiger Woods, and blinker left on for about half a mile. I am the foremost expert on all things Asian." This quote alone shows just how ignorant society can be. He feels as though these stereotypes have stripped away everything he has worked to become. That Americans can't see a difference, therefore it makes him what he looks like, not an individual with feelings..  "Like how every time you lump an Asian person into one culture is systematically making us
assimilate into an America we thought was
better than our war torn home, and every time you confuse me
with some other nationality, that I might share similar
features to, is stripping away my individuality."  This post can also connect to the short story, Slave on the Block, by Langsten Hughes. He proves many factors of generalization toward a culture with a large historical background, yet people are blind to their own racism.