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Poetry and performance are two major forms of entertainment at Saint Leo. On Mar. 8, CAB hosted “Frequency,” a new installment of the popular spoken word event, in the SCC Boardrooms.
The speaker was twenty-six-year-old Mwende “FreeQuency” Katwiwa. According to her website, Katwiwa is “an internationally touring author, host youth-worker, social-justice lecturer, teaching artist and workshop leader who has spent her life at the intersection of arts, education and activism.”
It all started when she came to the United States in 1996 as a child. She was unable to speak English, but the language fascinated her. Eventually, story-telling became an interest of hers. It was an effective way for her to communicate, especially because of her language barrier.
Katwiwa was never interested in poetry as a child. She considered it too boring and basic. This all changed one day when her mother took her to see a Spoken Word performance, which changed her entire view of poetry. She saw this as a way she could tell stories because of her own interest in listening to them.
Katwiwa’s audience was rather small, consisting of less than ten people. However, the small number of people allowed more intimate conversations to take place. She asked questions to get an idea of what people were most interested in hearing about. Terms were defined, for example: “activist.” Defining terms gave the audience an understanding of what she was referring to in her pieces.
Katwiwa also discussed black history and made connections to the past and today’s events. She was very interactive with the crowd, continuously asking questions and making jokes to keep her audience engaged.
The poet rehearsed multiple pieces. One, for example revolved around Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman. The background story was explained leading up to the traumatic situation that left the young man dead. She spoke about Martin being criminalized for wearing a hoodie and the consequences of Zimmerman’s actions. The piece also posed many thought provoking questions, such as “What would have happened if Zimmerman was black?”
To close, she rehearsed a piece that revolved around her being profiled by an older white woman. Her anger made her want to “drag” a woman who judged her because of her race and age. She made a Facebook post allowing people to free their mind under it and “condensed” it all into a poem. In the post, she asked black people if they could write a letter to white people, what they would say.
“Stop making everything about you and how uncomfortable you are,” Katwiwa urged.
“Frequency” was both entertaining and informative. It proved to be a powerful addition to Saint Leo’s Black History Month events. To learn more about Mwende Katwiwa, visit her website at FreeQuency Speaks.
