All are welcome at this Open Mic focusing on black history and black poets, and hosted by Hawona Sullivan Janzen and Wendy Brown-Baez.

Bring one poem to share… (and a second one to share, time permitting). 6:30PM sign-up. 7PM open mic begins!

We will also be reading beloved black poets: Maya Angelou, Derek Walcott, Langston Hughes, Patricia Smith, Lucille Clifton, James Wright, Danez Smith, and others.

Hawona Sullivan Janzen is the co-coordinator for the Witness Writing Program at the UMN’s Robert J.Jones Urban Research and Outreach-Engagement Center (UROC). Hawona has coordinated exhibits, creative writing classes, and radio programming on African-American storytelling. Janzen is a poet and volunteers her time with the African American Leadership Forum.

Wendy Brown-Báez’s poetry and prose appear in numerous journals and anthologies. Wendy was awarded a MN State Arts Board grant to facilitate writing workshops in non-profits. She has guided victims of domestic violence, homeless youth, incarcerated writers, heart patients, HIV+ clients and the grieving to tell their stories through writing. http://www.wendybrownbaez.com/