HarlemLive's
first ever Poetry Slam was held on Mar. 21 in its 125th
Street office. Poets from all over New York City with a
variety of messages, including peace, love and death, gave
the Slam a personality to cheer for. Over ten vibrant and
energetic poets participated in the Poetry Slam. Some were
even HarlemLive staff members, including Slam winner Qasim
Davis.
 With
the help of rythmic diction, Davis used "Expired"
to grab the attention and admiration of the audience and
judges. Davis discussed the U.S. bias against Muslims and
Arabs after Sept. 11 and now with the war in Iraq. "I
am Muslim, and a lot of Arabs and Muslims rights have been
taken away since September 11. That is what I address in
the poem, and the war Iraq, just to fight terrorism is bias
and it really doesn't address all terrorism within the world
and it only charges a certain amount of people, so I thought
that needed to be addressed," said 17-year-old Davis,
a Beacon high school student. "I can't draw. I can't
sing. I don't know how to play an instrument, but I write
well. That is the only way I have to express my feelings,"
said Davis.
Other poets featured were HarlemLive members Shireen Gooding,
Katrina Shakarian,  Yafreici
Peralta and Nkrumah Tinsley. Judges evaluated the poets
by their diction, appearance, presentation, content and
audience response. One judge was Raqiyah Mays, a freelance
writer for Vibe, Essence, Billboard, The Source, XXL, and
One World. Mays also has a weekend show on New York's "Power"
105.1FM. Other judges included Dean Irvy, a veteran director
as well as Broadway and off-Broadway actor as well as actress
Elaine Graham, who starred in 100 Centre Street, HBO’s
OZ and Another World. Graham can be currently seen in commercials
for Zocor and Verizon, as well as Dove soap print ads.
 The
comedic host of the Poetry Slam was Melvin Johnson, a previous
member of Harlem Live. With his easygoing personality and
hilarious jokes, the audience of over 60 felt like an audience
of one. Chika Anuforoh, and Harlem Live director Richard
Calton were DJs for the Slam, giving it a livelier atmosphere.
Thanks to Coca-Cola, those who attended the slam were able
to enjoy the cool and refreshing taste of Coca-Cola products
as they reveled in the unique flow of words presented by
each poet.
All proceeds of the Slam went towards running HarlemLive.
Organizers called the event a success and plan to hold similar
ones in the future, allowing poets to express their written
style through speech.
Winners:
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