Kaffy Mwangi: May 2011

Hisia Zangu Open Mic Poetry

Hisia Zangu Open Mic Poetry is a quartely event yearly with round-table events monthly,Hisia provides a stage and an audeince for any artiste with a talent he/she would love to share,Hisia offers spoken word/ slam poetry/street poetry a soap-box for people to express their views, emotions, life experiences or information. The views of the performers encompass religion, politics, sex and gender. It could be put as a confession, a political essay, or a call for action; mainly used to inform or make people conscious of some aspect pertaining to life. The Hisia Table; offers performers a platform to meet other performers discuss and critique their work.

sitawa wafula

Sitawa Wafula is an Actuarial Science drop-out and poetess who writes, performs and hosts poetry forums and workshops in Nairobi. She started writing in 2003 after a rape ordeal and began open mic performances in Nov 2008 when she was fired from her last job after getting a seizure attack and falling on a client.Being a rape-survivor,most of her pieces centre round the girl-child and socio-political issues and is involved in advocacy work, leading a sanitary-towel campaign in partnership with Sanibank Consortium for girls from rural Kenya. She is also an Ambassador for Mental Health in Kenya under BasicNeeds UK in Kenya.

wamathia

He is a writer, an accountant, an events manager, and one of Kenya’s most prolific poetry bloggers.He is above all else, just a regular guy who loves to read and write creatively.He runs his own website wamathai.com which encompasses Kenyan poetry events (which are regularly updated and some enthusiasts see their writing given a first airing.)Poetry pieces from all around and articles from diverse origins.His influences include the poet E.E.Cummings and the East African Poet and critic,Taban lo Liyong.Wamathai can be seen in action at one of his regular performance poetry events,Wamathai Spoken Word.

K8

Kate Kamunde is a human rights defender cum artist who identifies as a woman of color.She lives in Nairobi and now volunteers for Artists For Recognition and Acceptance (AFRA-Kenya) which she founded in November, 2008.She volunteers as the group Program and Finance Officer.Artists For Recognition and Acceptance (AFRA-Kenya) is a group of Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender (LBT) women artists who express themselves through art (www.afrakenya.org).She has been previously working for the Gay and Lesbian Coalition of Kenya (GALCK) which is based in Nairobi as an Administrator (www.galck.org).K8's is a refined poet who runs her blog (www.afrakenya-womantowoman.blogspot.com) specifically tailored poetry and articles for women who love other women and has managed to perform several of those pieces during major organizational events within GALCK and outside.She is in the process of launching her first poetry book that will feature some of the most favorite queer themed poems sometime in August of 2011.Kate is also a skilled vocalist and composer. She has recorded a demo for four of her songs which are in the line of human rights and has won favor in the eyes of the LGBTI community for her visibility especially in empowering,informing and entertaining them through her poetry and music.

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Monday, May 9, 2011

cultural week at daystar university:photos by Irene