Dreaming in COLOR and in RHYME: Poetry as Artistic Activism and Liberatory Praxis

• In Event: Culture Wars in the Black Educational Landscape: An Exploration of Afrofuturism and Freedom Dreaming through a Social Justice Lens

Abstract

Imani J. Wallace explicates the historical significance of protest poetry as a mode of Artistic Activism and its impact on Black/African diasporic students in the present day through a qualitative research study that explores social transformation through liberatory praxis at a public high school in Amherst, Massachusetts. Considering how students and educators engage in Hip-Hop literacies, this work argues that spoken word poetry as a form of critical artistic expression serves as a vehicle for challenging dominant narratives within and beyond the classroom to effect change. Student growth and transformation are evaluated by exploring a connection to higher academic performance, enhanced self-confidence and social awareness, and a greater overall appreciation for poetry and engagement. Dreaming in C.O.L.O.R. (Curriculum Offering Literacies of the Oppressed and Radical) and in R.H.Y.M.E. (Relevant Hip-Hop Youth Methods of Education) demonstrates socio-political inquiry to discuss the ways in which artistic modalities serve as a cultural marker, an access point to critical issues, and a tool of refuge for urban marginalized voices.

Author

• Imani Wallace, The University of Massachusetts at Amherst