(Content Warning: Racism, misogynoir, violence)
“Last night, no one showed up to march for Rekia Boyd.”
Have you noticed that conversations about police brutality and other forms of violence against black people tend to focus on men and boys? Those men and boys are certainly worth fighting for – but when women like Rekia Boyd are killed by police and people don’t show up to rally for her, something’s wrong.
In this moving slam poem, Porsha Olayiwola explores the injustice of violence against black women and girls – and the apathy towards their pain.
Porsha holds the 2014 Individual World Slam title, and this powerful poem shows exactly why she’s the champion – and why we must show our outrage for black women victims, and #SayHerName.
With Love,
The Editors at Everyday Feminism
Click for the Transcript
To learn more about this topic, check out:
- 3 Ways State Violence Impacts Black Women That We Don’t Talk About Nearly Enough
- 5 Ways ‘Respectability Politics’ Blame Black Women for Their Own Oppression
Black, poet, dyke-goddess, hip-hop feminist, womanist, friend, Porsha Olayiwola is a performance artist who believes in pixie dust and second chances. A resident of Boston, by way of Chicago, Porsha O is the reigning Individual World Poetry Slam Champion. Her intention is to speak, love, praise, and maintain a cypher that is undocumented, uncontrollable and just plain ole dope. Check her out on Facebook page here.
Video courtesy of Button Poetry. For more amazing spoken word performances, check them out on YouTube and Facebook.
