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Saturday, February 23
Doors @ 6:30pm - Program @ 7pm
Workers Art & Heritage Centre, 51 Stuart Street
$10/Pay What You Can – No One Turned Away
* Cash Bar * Live Music * Poetry Readings * 2 Cash Slam Prizes *
To register as a Slam contestant or for further details: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Marking Black History Month 2013, the Hamilton Friendship Association with Cuba (HFAC) invites you to join us for Rhythm of Resistance, a poetry slam and cultural program to raise funds for the Hurricane Sandy Relief Fund for Cuba, run by the Canadian Network on Cuba (charitable tax receipts available for donations). We are pleased to announce that the new Cuban Consul General in Toronto, Mr. Javier Dómokos Ruiz, will bring greetings to the event. There will be poetry readings and historical presentations by our esteemed panel of judges. The evening will conclude with live music from the Hamilton Youth Steel Orchestra, sure to have you up and dancing by night's end. More exciting details to be announced in the coming weeks, stay tuned!
Compete in the Poetry Slam!
You are invited to write and recite an original poem about Cuba, black history or the theme “Rhythm of Resistance”. One prize will be awarded by the panel of poetry judges and community leaders, and another by the audience. The winners will each receive a $50 cash prize. Contestants are asked to register at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Poetry Slam Judge’s Panel
d-lishus, local poet
poet mother firegoddess diva storyteller dispensing words of wisdom laced with dub and framed by womanly hips hard hitting political sistah telling it like it is and why a spade should never be called a spade feminist dyke warrioress spinning it and spitting it to educate the yoots fighting hate with words and poetry and starting love-fires everywhere breaking the bonds of mental bondage with my word[s]word
Dr. Keith Ellis, Author & Professor Emeritus, Department of Spanish & Portuguese (Retired), University of Toronto
Dr. Keith Ellis taught Latin American Literature and Culture at the University of Toronto, from 1963 to 2000. Specializing in Latin American poetry and the short story, he is considered one of the world’s leading authorities on the poetry of Caribbean writer, Nicolás Guillén. In 1998, he made history by becoming one of the few scholars to be awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the 270-year-old University of Havana. He has published 18 books and more than 100 scholarly articles, and his poetry has been featured in various journals and books.
Bill Mahoney,Steeltown Poet
Bill Mahoney is United Steel Workers Local 1005's resident poet. Born and raised in Hamilton and a lifelong steel worker, he is now retired from the job but not the fight. Bill’s poetry, expressing the concerns of everyday people, always captures the essence of the issue they are written to address. He has recently released a compilation of his work entitled Rebel Rhymes.
Klyde Broox, Local poet
Steeped in oral traditions, Broox’s performances are consistently pitched to engage, entertain, and invite audiences to experience poetry as social communion. Originally from Jamaica, Broox settled in Hamilton with his family in 1993 and started PoeMagic. In 2007, partnering with the Hamilton Centre for Civic Inclusion, Broox coordinated and hosted Hamilton Speaks! Klyde designed and led, a summer youth dub poetry workshop S.T.E.P. U.P. (Speech That Enlightens People Uplifts Places). Broox also edited the S.T.E.P. U.P anthology, R/evolutionary Harvest.
Evelyn Myrie, Executive Director of HCCI & Chair of the Hamilton Black History Committee
Evelyn Myrie is the executive director of the Hamilton Centre for Civic Inclusion as well as Chairperson for the Hamilton Black History Committee, which organizes the Reverend John C Holland Awards, of which she is a co-founder and current co-chair. The Black History Committee also spearheaded Stewart Memorial Church's 175th anniversary celebrations.
Join us!
This evening promises to be an unforgettable night of poetry and music in celebration of the heroic struggles against slavery, racism and colonialism. This year marks several historic anniversaries for the liberation struggles of peoples all over the world. Black History Month 2013 marks the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation and the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. Further, 2013 marks the 25th anniversary of the battles of Cuito Cuanavale, which saw the armed forces of Cuba, Angola and the South West African Peoples Organization defeat the South African Defense Forces in Angola. This defeat is now widely acknowledged as a critical turning point in the struggle against apartheid.
Need a ride?
Want to contribute or get involved? Contact us at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.!
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