Black Don’t Crack

June 18, 2015
Congregation of Liberation
Black Don’t Crack

African American Art and Culture Complex
762 Fulton Street
7:30 pm
$12-20 NOTA
June 18
7:30pm show

 

Black Don’t Crack is a musical-theatre production using humor, drama, and interdisciplinary performance to investigate the revolutionary – and sometimes painful – ways Queer Black Artists work together to heal themselves and their communities of internalized oppression and trauma.

So often in Black and Queer Liberation Movements, the focus is on the very necessary fight against white supremacy, patriarchy, queerphobia, and other forms of systemic oppression. But that doesn’t leave time to explore the ways those dynamics, and other sources of sociopolitical marginalization, impact how we share space and experience relationship with each other.

In light of the recent and historical state violence, Congregation of Liberation would like to remind you of the beautifully complex ways we have come together to make love, build community, create art, and work out our differences — all while we continue to fight against injustice.

Join us for an inspirational evening of Love, Laughter, and Liberation.

BIOGRAPHIES

	Jezebel Delilah X: Jezebel Delilah X is a queer, lush-bodied, Black, femme performance artist, writer, actress, filmmaker, educator, facilitator, orator and Faerie Queen Mermaid Gangsta for The Revolution. She loves to flirt, laugh, perform, crack corny jokes, and insert Octavia Butler references into every conversation. She is currently a Co-Managing Editor for Everyday Feminism; Senior Editor for Black Girl Dangerous; Director of Training at Peacock Rebellion (QTPOC Activist-Artist-Healers); co-host of the queer/feminist Open Mic, Culture Fuck; Co-Director of queer, Black, multi-disciplinary performance troupe, Congregation of Liberation (recently awarded a QCC grant for the upcoming musical, Black Don’t Crack); one of the founding members of Deviant Type Press; and a former adjunct Community College English Instructor. She has performed in a wide variety of Queer and Queer People Of Color theatre projects and cabarets, and been a featured reader at literary events all over the Bay Area. She uses a combination of memoir, poetry, theatre, and feminist storytelling to advance her politix of radical love, socioeconomic justice, anti-racism, community accountability, critical reflection, love, healing, and liberation. She holds a MFA Degree in Creative Writing from Mills College where she focused on Young Adult Fiction and Creative Non-Fiction. She loves romantic songs, romantic films, romantic books, romantic conversations, romantic friendships, and writing long, vulnerable, passionate facebook statuses about romance.
Sabaa Westbrooks: My name is Sabaa Zareena Waseema, I’m 25 years old and I live my life with purpose in every moment of breath. I love to dance. Dancing is what keeps me sane. I love to sing as well, mostly for personal enjoyment not for performance, but that may change. I’m vegan and I love to cook and feed people, when they’ll eat my food. I love to dress up! I love being naked so when I do wear clothes I’d like them to express my person in the best way possible. I tell jokes with Brouhaha. Laughter mixed with deep ish is the best teacher. I love to see people happy and full of joy, love and light. My misson as I know it is to love as much as possible. Love even when the world tells me not to. Love those that fight against you so that you may be able to teach them how to love themselves, and then love you. I believe CoOL defines love. The empowerment of Black folks comes with the empowerment of all people. For we are all people, Black folks are.
	KaliMa: The name’s KaliMa. I’ve lived a quarter of this journey called life and I must say, its been a transformative ride. I was planted and rooted in the concrete streets of Brooklyn, but bloomed in the sunny sides of California. I’m a mellow old soul whose intentions are for the betterment of myself and for my people. I’m a full bodied Goddess who is an advocate for crop tops and nudity, and I implement fashion for self expression with deep hopes to illuminate self love from within. Music is my whole entire life; I can fully communicate and express my emotions through music with any song. Writing poetry keeps me sane; you will know how I feel when I write. Photography gives me the voice to spread messages without speaking, but seeing. Cooking food is magic. An Island girl like me loves to cook (introduce me to spices and I’ll use it in anything)! I love to laugh! I laugh at the most weirdest and stupidest thing–it never fails. I believe that I was created to make a movement, to liberate those who struggles with emerging to their full authentic being from the impurities of the ego dominated world. I stand for love. I live for love. I love to love. That’s all I want to spread in any way I can, whether its a smile, a hug, or a message. Love is a gift, and lesson intertwined.
YdeDios Eye GyeNyame: YdeDios Eye GyeNyame (also known as Nya and Ojo), is a writer, peacemaker, singer, sound artist, comedienne, and actress. Eye live my ongoing quest to deconstruct the layered systems of oppression by discovering the freedom of self-love and acceptance. Eye choose to speak, sing and laugh in the streets of everyday and everywhere in opposition to the pain displayed in the faces of human beings who are prey to this capitalist imperialist system. Eye love to freestyle my life’s soundtrack and always have a song on my tongue intertwined with Universal energy. Eye am learning the art of moving energy through touch and sound. Eye make we feel the vibrations. Eye love detecting patterns in lifes’ paths and strive to live my freest self. Eye am a teacher who believes that we all are a part of the human family. Eye am passionate about cooking as an expression of an array of emotions. Eye love shopping in grocery stores because its the closest way for a city-bred woman to have access to the Earth Mother’s bounty in such a digestible context. So yummy… get in my belly. Eye love tangents, but you would know that once eye warm up to your light. Eye shine bright but the flows’ at first slight but still hella tight. Aight? And eye’mah write these words so we can live for the revolution and liberate millions that live. Word, write? We don’t need the greed to live our lives. Eye be there for we and eye’mah make sure we be ascending in the effing lap of luxury. And eye got mad love to give. You my people.
	TaMeicka L. Clear: TaMeicka L. Clear, who prefers to be called Meicka, is a working-poor class, big bodied Black dyke from Texas, residing in Oakland,CA. Meicka is the Body Positive Coach, Spiritual Coach, and Community Organization Consultant of CLEAR Coaching and Consulting. Meicka is a program coordinator at a local career development non-profit and a member of the Black multi-disciplinary artist collective, Congregation of Liberation. She is a community educator and wellness practitioner using hood alchemy, emotional intelligence, and other spiritual arts, as well as formal education and training, to foster transformative and healing spaces for Black people living at varying intersections. Meicka’s loves are vibrant high top tennis shoes, ginormous earrings, the hood, and beloved community/family.
Merika Reagan: Merika Reagan is a San Francisco native and animal lover. She also loves the arts. She loves writing and acting.Her comedic style mixed with her flare for melodrama makes her a breath taking performer. She has been described as the quiet type but transforms into a real ham in front of an audience.
	Ahmunet Jessica Jordon: Ahmunet is a Black, queer poet, writer and educator from Baltimore. She is committed to sharing raw stories of the Black experience to ignite change, transformation, and healing through art. ( if you want something more fun we can work on it, ya know i don’t really do fun)
Ray Ray: Ray Ray is a unicorn born in human form to adorn the forlorn with popcorn. And sparkles.
	Beyond Deep: “BEYONDEEP Productions utilizes film, fine art, poetry, sound production, design, erotic art, and performance. As a couple we seek to heal, empower, embody love with our art, and spread love throughout our life. Go to www.beyondeep.com to check out our documentary trailer, and sexy vampire short film on YouTube!”
Lisa Evans: Lisa Evans is a qpoc actress, poet, and youth development worker based out of Oakland, CA. After graduating from University of California Santa Cruz, Lisa moved to Oakland and began working with several different Bay Area youth development organizations including The California Shakespeare Theatre and Youth Uprising. Lisa’s work in youth development has focused specifically on youth leadership development and on building more robust programming for LGBTQIA2-S youth.Lisa has also performed with several different Bay Area Arts Organizations including LitQuake Out Loud and the Beast Crawl Literary Festival. They were also a member of 2010 Santa Cruz Team and 2012 Bay Area Unified Team at the Nation Poetry Slam as well as the 2010 Santa Cruz representative at the 2010 Women of The World Poetry Slam.Lisa most recently performed as a part of Brouhaha: QTPOC Activist-Comics Rise Up and as an ensemble cast member in The Love Balm For My Spirit Child, a theatrical performance based on the testimonies of Bay Area mothers who have lost children to violence. They can also be seen in award winning filmmaker Cheryl Dunye’s short film Black Is Blue.