loud and proud: the audacity of quirk

"the question for you is
what have you ever traveled toward
more than your own safety?"

-Lucille Clifton "further note to clark"

Inspired by the whirlwind madness and inspiration of the Juneteenth Freedom Academy on Angry Letter and Protest Poem (this week is actually the third and final session before "action of our fate day"!) I wrote my first out angry poem to Barack Obama...failed superhero of the first degree. His stance in support of Israel and against the lives of the Palestinian people has been bothering me since early on in his campaign, but I have finally found the words to fill out the gut feelings I have (like "shame on you" and "how dare you" and "this is not because you are black").

It is amazing to put the weight of our repressed vocabularies behind our rage and see the love and insight waiting there. It has been astounding for me, in these past couple of weeks to allow the rhythm, structure and escalation of poetic form to take me to places of promise and outrage that I didn't know I had words to imagine. And trust. I was quite the angry black girl already.

I think this reminder, and my first foray into the crafting of poems that should be shouted through bullhorns on busy corners, a reasonable distance away from the secret service and the apathetic everyone else, is well timed. In September, Black Gay Pride in Atlanta and North Carolina Gay Pride here in Durham offer reminders of what happens when protest turns into parade and the brazenness of queers of color transforming the world with their love becomes just one more disco beat to fall in line with.

June Jordan asks "When will we seize around us with our freedom?" and I further ask, what good is my confrontational fashion sense and wide halo of electric hair if I am not shocking with world into remembering what life means, what love looks like, and how far we need to go to get there. Which brings me to this love letter to you...the bravest most beautiful people I know about. Will you raise up the angry spirit of June Jordan and her critical genius colleague Lucille Clifton this week? Will you shock someone, not just by the presence of your radiant being, but with an intentional challenge to the status quo/aka the way it is because we let it be? (note: this isn't just externally political. if you are like me there may be some circumstances in your personal life that need some waking up and transformation.

(and speaking of waking up....check out the new QBG Anthem..part of B Steady of the Lost Bois amazing song a day project. Every song in the series is DOPE...this one is just super special because it's dedicated to you!

Check it out here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdR5n-H4450

Yes...batten up the brilliance of being you and propel us towards the world we need to live in. What are you pushing this week? Let me know.


The MobileHomeComing Project heads down to Atlanta this weekend for the most beautifullest thing about ATL PRIDE...the THIRD ANNUAL QUEERKY COOKOUT this Sunday!!!!

RSVP and let us know what yummy dish you will be bringing here: http://www.evite.com/app/publicUrl/NXOMIFCVDCMTYIDRRRGW/QBG3

(p.s. you'll have a chance to donate to the MobileHomeComing..the quirkiest riskiest thing I've ever done in my life...what the MobileHomeComing and how can you support you ask? Check out some cute teddy bears explaining it here http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/6999787/)


Also...email us at quirkyblackgirls@gmail.com if you want to participate in a special June Jordan inspired high energy poetry creation session on Saturday at 4pm.

Also check out this QBG I ran across the other day on someone's face book page...honest hopeful love music is like a vitamin! http://www.myppk.com/PPKs/indexC.aspx?PPK=5443

And also for the artist in YOU check out this call for for submissions about what it takes to FUEL our lives: www.malisite.org

and finally...QBG Iresha in Philly is at it again...collecting dictionaries so that the youth of her city may have their lives transformed in their own words...hit her up on her page for more info on how you can support the Malcolm X Dictionary project!

Love you so much I want to shout it from the rooftops and reset the hearts of anyone who would hold you back.
Always,
QBG Lex