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2nd Annual Oratorical Festival
 Saturday, March 25, 2017 
The 2nd Annual Huey P. Newton Oratorical Festival was a smashing success. Named an honor of Huey Newton, the co-founder of the Black Party for Self-Defense, the event features spoken word, dramatic plays, hip hop and other forms of performance inspired by the need to give young people an opportunity to share their voice and views.
The event is the brain-child of Ngola Nzingha teacher, Baba Ajamu Stewart, and with support from a number of teachers and parents, including Mama Carlynne Wooten-Scott, it drew a standing room only crowd.
After last year's play, inspired by Mama Kara Cotton's trip to Kenya and written and co-produced by Mama Darnisha Wright (1st), no one suspected the writing duo had another amazing sketch to do, but they didn't disappoint. The Malcolm X (1st) and Frederick Douglass (2nd) classes produced a play that focused on celebrating the Black family. They showcased the need for brothers and sisters to support each other, and be "Kind and listen, even on the days when you're straight up tripping".
The play closed with a reggae-inspired song by 2nd graders Daniel Wilson and Rayauna Harris, and was greeted with a standing ovation from everyone, including one of the night's special guest, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaff, who took time to honor the school and the community during Black History Month.
Many students shared spoken word, including Amyrah Furaha (7th), reciting a poem, "I Can't Breathe", honoring Eric Garner and calling attention to the disparity in policing. Nassor At-Thinnin-Gant, a 4th grader, recited "Doubtless" by Steve Ericson, and reminded everyone to "pack your dreams" because "they're portable". Seventh graders Seynabou Kouyate and Selma Apara combined together to showcase their spoken word abilities and their dancing abilities, and some said they raised the bar for next year's performance.
One of the evening's star was fourth grader Alade Tyler, who recited a poem, "People Equal" by James Berry. He also teamed with his brother, 7th grader, Adesina Tyler and Joshua Lynch to recite an excerpt from Frederick Douglass' "4th of July Speech", and then later he joined with the Ngola Nzingha class to perform a rap cypher.
The Ngola Nzingha class continued last year's tradition and produced another original rap cypher featuring nearly every member of the class. See the youtube video below to fully enjoy their performance.
The evening was a hit, and everyone left the event energized at this next generation of spoken word artists and scholars.
Komari smith Says Sep 12, 2017 As a student of ile omode I was proud to give my speech in front of my family. My speech was with Yhzekel Kahsai and we read a speech about Langston Hughes. |
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