Ladies First (Every 1st Saturday @ Hidmo)

8PM Open Mic / 9PM Features / All Ages $5donation

Saturday March 6^th, 2010

CARA Birthday Party & International Women’s Day Celebration

featuring:

Malkia Cyril, Desdamona

and DJ Miss Broadway

hosted by Gigi & Sylva with a special CARA Honor presented to Onion (Ladies First founder)

A monthly open mic and artist showcase, Ladies First provides a safe and supportive space for women, trans, gender non-confirming, two-spirit and queer women to be honored center stage. Each month holds an open mic and features artists acclaimed both locally and internationally. Ladies First is a project of CARA (http://www.cara-seattle.org/ Communitities Against Rape & Abuse) and is sponsored by: Hidmo, KBCS 91.3fm, B-Girl Bench and Seattle Department of Neighborhoods.

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Featured Artist Bios:

Malkia Cyril

Poet, Malkia A. Cyril, is the Executive Director and founder of the Center for Media Justice. With more than 15 years’ experience as a community organizer, strategist, and communications expert, Malkia has worked with organizations such as the Applied Research Center, We Interrupt This Message, and the Community Organizing Team, and has partnered closely with Consumer’s Union, Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, the Media and Democracy Coalition, Public Knowledge, the Media Access Project, and Free Press.

Malkia has led dozens of community campaigns; is the author of numerous essays and articles on media, marginalization, and movement-building; and motivates the building of popular movements through the delivery of training, public speeches, and strategic consultation. Malkia is the recipient of the Media Leader award from the Alliance for Community Media, the Emerging Leader award from the Media That Matters Film Festival, and other awards from the Media Justice Fund, Rock the Vote, and others. Malkia has appeared on or in Democracy Now, Hard Knock Radio, Breakdown FM, Free Speech TV, the documentary Outfoxed, the documentary Broadcast Blues, the SF Weekly, the San Francisco Bay Guardian, the New York Times, the Village Voice, and others.  http://centerformediajustice.org

Desdamona

DESDAMONA is an international, award-winning artist; who has taken her distinct lyrics, sound and artistic stylings to audiences from Minnesota to Hawaii, from Puerto Rico toGermany; gracing some of Hip Hop and poetry’s most illustrious stages.

Desdamona has had the pleasure of opening up for distinguished artists including Wyclef Jean, GURU, Bahamadia, Zap Mama, Black Uhuru/Sly & Robbie, Saul Williams, Ursula Rucker and Rhymesayers Artists. She has also shared the stage with other influential Hip Hop artists including Canada’s Eternia and bgirl Rockafella.

Desdamona has worked in over 200 schools throughout the Midwest, conducting workshops and as artist in residence, working with more than 10,000 students in public, private and alternative schools as well as colleges and universities. She has also worked in residencies and workshops in Stillwater Prison, Shakopee Prison, Red Wing Juvenile Facility and the Juvenile Detention Center in Minneapolis MN. http://www.myspace.com/desdamona

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International Women’s Day March: Starts noon @ Powell Barnett Park (MLK & Alder) down Jackson to Oxidental Square/Pioneer Square.

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=327470192804#!/event.php?eid=295482951875&ref=ts

Internet and Social Justice in Central and South Seattle

Wednesday, March 3

5:30PM -7:30PM

GARFIELD COMMUNITY CENTER

2323 E. Cherry St.,  Seattle

Hidmo Community Empowerment Project, Reclaim the Media and NW MAG-Net present Let’s Get Connected: Internet and Social Justice in Central and South Seattle, a community forum on winning better, faster, and more affordable Internet access in the historically underserved neighborhoods of the Central District and Beacon Hill.

This dialogue and knowledge sharing event will look at the promise and the politics of the internet and broadband for local residents in two key neighbohoods. Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn and City Council members recently listed “expanded broadband access” as a priority for 2010.

Seattle is one of the most wired cities in the U.S. yet, thousands of residents, organizations and businesses still find themselves on the wrong side of the digital …divide. How can we close the divide and bring greater access for all?

Together, residents, small business owners, government and industry reps will work to build a common understanding of the challenges we face and discuss possible options for our digital future. A community dialogue and knowledge sharing event that looks at the promise and the politics of the internet and broadband for neighborhoods in the margins.

Participants in the March 3 “Let’s Get Connected” event will also be invited to share their own experiences with local Internet access, while community media producers document their stories on audio and video.

Child care and refreshments will be available.

Sponsored by the Hidmo Community Empowerment Project, Reclaim the Media, the Seattle Digital Justice Coalition and the NW Media Action Grassroots Network (MAG-Net), with support from the City of Seattle Department of Neighborhoods and Seattle Parks and Recreation. More info: jason@hidmo.org

Super*Star

If you are not going to be at Hidmo tonight between 5-7pm then be at Faire Gallery & Cafe (1351 East Olive Way) for Jazz Happy Hour.  Hidmo family JusMoni (She Lives) will be performing with a live band featuring NW favorites Ouwour Arungar, Mark Sampson and Royce Shorter.

Why are we pumping up a show that is not at Hidmo? 

Because we love JusMoni:  At sixteen local artist and (s)hero JusMoni truly is the future of not only music but activism in Seattle.   Her music is deeply rooted in Hip Hop and Soul blended with her life experiences growing up in Seattle’s Central District, Beacon Hill, South End, and other areas where she also does a ton of activism.  As JusMoni gives audiences a dose of reality about her life and the lives of many others that have grown up in similar conditions, from being a survivor of rape in marginalized communities (both Black and Cambodian communities) to having her friends and peers die from gang violence, her words are healing and soothing.  JusMoni gives voice and provides space for those that have not found theirs yet as youth and adults through community organizing, education, and faith that she and others can create families and communities that are safe, healing, educated, empowered, and more.

JusMoni is active in organizations such as Seattle Young People’s Project (SYPP), Seattle Youth Hip Hop Council, Youth Speak Seattle, The Service Board (TSB), Hidmo Community Empowerment Project and Communities Agains Rape and Abuse (CARA).

Reclaim the Media and the Youth Media Institute invite you to join us at Hidmo on Friday,

March 27, for a mostly-informal discussion about social justice organizing and media activism in the Seattle area.

Our guest for the evening is Malkia Cyril (Oakland, CA), the founder and Executive Director of the Center for Media Justice – a national media strategy and action center building a powerful grassroots movement for racial and economic justice through media change. Malkia also coordinates the national Media Action Grassroots Network (MAG-Net).

As a queer, working class African-Am/Caribbean born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, Malkia’s belief in media change as a core strategy for social justice is based in h/er experience as the daughter of a Black Panther mom. “I watched how media bias helped destroy a movement, and I believe in the power of strategic stories to help raise it again.”

We’ll provide dinner – it’ll be a chance for each of our organizations to describe our own challenges involving the media, and to discuss potential collaborations.

9:00pm FUNKY REGGAE PARTY aka March Madness!

“Come see the most beautiful people in Seattle all under one roof!  That means you have to come to make it complete! Bring who you want and look HELLA fly (which you do already but come on now….)”

Watch and let us know what you think!

Hidmo on the TeeVee

Everyone at Hidmo is eagerly anticipating the debut of a short documentary to air this Monday (March 23rd) on the Seattle Channel (ch21) at 7pm called “Hidmo Means Home” as part of an ongoing series called Community Stories.  The 15 min doc is being produced (as we speak) by Jill Irene Freidberg of Corrugated Films, an amazing activist and filmmaker that we are proud to call fam and whose bio should make all other activist/filmmakers wanna step their game up.  If you don’t have cable – tweet or facebook us to find out where you can watch it OR wait for it to be posted online.  Either way check it out and let us know what you think.

Rahwa