Who Is The Original Woman?

Her Signature Poem “The Original Woman” explains it all. Through her pride in her own full-figure she teaches our youth and reminds the adults to “love your body.” In an effort to free our people from the slave like mentality of being “light, white and thin” she uses historical references to remind us of who The Original Woman really was.

The Original Woman approaches the stage and confesses, “I have to tell the truth. I’m not really a poet. I’m a people’s soldier. I only use poetry as a tool to mobilize the people.” This people’s soldier, a native of North Carolina, has been educating, training, and mobilizing since 1996. Recruiting soldiers one by one, she prepares to mobilize an army around unity, African self-determination, and feminism.

“Just Call me Mama Tubman”

Those who have witnessed a live performance may have heard her reference Harriet Tubman. Before Tubman could lead her people to the Underground Railroad, she had to have chat sessions to remind them that they were still slaves. So many people were content with working the plantations, and the rations their master gave them that they had forgotten they were slaves. Similarly today we have grown so content with our nickel and dime jobs and our slave mentality, that we are blind to oppression. The Original Woman uses spoken word as her chat sessions; the first step in emancipating her people mentally, and liberating them spiritually and physically.

The Original Woman’s performances and organizing has no borders. You can find her raising consciousness from North Carolina to Western Europe; the March for Women’s Lives being among her favorite audiences.

Representing North Carolina to the fullest with the Durham, NC slam team she is currently the #1 ranked individual poet in North Carolina and crowned one of the top ten poets in the country by the 2005 National Poetry Slam! You can find out more information about the National Poetry Slam at www.nps2005.org . Even with her national recognition she still has a policy of 1 or 1000, she has performed for audiences from 100 – 1.15 million! She has graced the mic for the BET’s reality commercial Mic Check, NAACP, NOW, the Democratic Party, Planned Parenthood, and shared stages with artist such as Alix Olsen (Def Poetry Jam), Ishle Park (NAACP Image awards and Def Poetry Jam), Whoopi Goldberg, Infamous Peter, Paul, and Mary (National Legendary Folk Singers), Ani DiFranco (“Riteous Babe” folk singer), Moby (The face of techno), Wanda Sykes Hall (Comedian), Nikki Giovanni (Poet and activist), Yolanda Adams (Gospel Singer), MC Lyte (Hip Hop Pioneer), Myra J. (Comedian), Helena D. Lewis (Def Poetry Jam). She reigns as the Author of Naked Expression and one of the most commonly requested chapbooks Spoken Word: The Movement. She is also the creator of three of the hottest CD’s on the spoken word circuit, Life – By Any Means Necessary!, The Messenger of Truth, and her most recent project The Addiction.

“Rhetoric is not a substitute for work!”

Being one of the few to live by her words, she writes in the form of scriptures and creeds for survival. For nearly a decade she has been mobilizing across racial and political party lines with organizations such as the NAACP, United to Stop Systematic Slavery, NARAL Pro-Choice America, the National Council of Negro Women, and her own organization The Freedom Project. She runs one of the only national festivals to focus solely on Spoken Word and Social Justice – The Freedom Fire Spoken Word Festival, which features a $1000 poetry slam. She also co-chair a four – location venue with Queen Sheba, Kwintessential and HBO’s Punany Poet Mo’ Browne called Sistah Cypher: Women Empowerment through Spoken Word – out of Washington, DC, Chicago, IL, Norfolk, VA, and London.

The Original Woman is one of the strongest artists in the nation that uses a combination of her background in grassroots organizing and rhythmic scriptures to mobilize the masses to make change – in addition to lobbying legislatures and organizing public demonstrations. Her last project was in April of 2005 where she was instrumental in organizing the National Women of Color and Allies Conference. This is a historical event sponsored by the National Organization for Women. Previously in August of 2004 you could find her organizing the “Stop the Bush Agenda Protest” against the New York City Republican National Convention – which was about 15,000 strong. Shortly before that she was a senior field organizer for the National March for Women’s Lives (April 2004) – the largest march in the history of the US, which pulled out 1.15 million artivist (those who combine arts and social justice) and activist. For the last few years the Original Woman has operated as the National Field Organizer for the National Organization for Women – the largest feminist organization in the world. She is currently working on her Juris Doctor in Denver, Colorado. Be sure to check out her online schedule so that you can join the rank of people soldiers!

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