![\"\"](\"http:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Leone.jpg\")
<\/a>Leone<\/p><\/div>Leone, a writer and leader of an urban poetry movement in Dayton, Ohio, will speak Thursday, Aug. 29, at the event, which will run from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the Thompson Student Union Steps on Centennial Mall. If the weather doesn\u2019t cooperate, the program will be moved inside the Thompson Student Union.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis series of events over this next year is to commemorate the totality of the horrific and majestic experience of black people in America from 1619 to 2019,\u201d Ben Davis, professor of law and co-chair of the 1619 Committee, said. \u201cWe are also planning other events \u2014 Health and the People, Art and the People, Slavery and the People, Faith and the People, Law and the People \u2014 and a writing contest are in the works to hopefully have a series of learning moments for our University community over the course of the school year.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cThe purpose of this first program is to have members of the community honor and commemorate the lives and experiences of African Americans \u2014 living, dead, famous, infamous, from any field of endeavor \u2014 through spoken word, quotes, sayings, poems and readings,\u201d said Angela Siner, director of the Africana Studies Program and co-chair of the 1619 Committee.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want these programs to inspire and engage through the words and stories that spotlight African Americans\u2019 contributions to U.S. culture during the past 400 years,\u201d Davis said.<\/p>\n
Both agree Leone is the perfect person to open the series.<\/p>\n
Leone received the 2018 Ohio Governor\u2019s Award in the community development and participation category. The honor was presented by the Ohio Arts Council and Ohio Citizens for the Arts Foundation and recognized the educator and entrepreneur for creating and strengthening interactive arts participation among diverse community members while increasing awareness about the arts.<\/p>\n
More than a decade ago, Leone and her husband, Robert Owens Sr., founded Oral Funk Poetry Productions; the creative urban arts initiative has brought together communities across racial, cultural, ideological and economic divides.<\/p>\n
She told the Dayton Daily News she was influenced by growing up in a large family with a grandmother who believed life is better when shared: \u201cIn community, we can be more creative, more impactful, reach more people in diverse audiences.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her project, The Signature: A Poetic Medley Show, presents a fusion of urban poetry, music, dance and visual arts from local, regional and international talent. The quarterly show expanded to include a competition, The Last Poet Standing.<\/p>\n
Through Signature Educational Solutions in Dayton, Leone works with schools, youth art organizations and community groups. A big focus is on girls\u2019 and women\u2019s empowerment. <\/p>\n
The wordsmith has written and performed commissioned works for many organizations, and she was the featured artist at the 2017 National Breaking Silences Conference, where she shared a poem about her journey with dyslexia.<\/p>\n
Leone was known as Lucy Armstrong when she received a bachelor of science degree in criminal justice in 2000 from The University of Toledo. The native of the Glass City is working on a book of poems and short stories.<\/p>\n
1619-2019: The Legacy of Black People in America Series is free and sponsored by the College of Law, the College of Arts and Letters, the Africana Studies Program, and the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sierra Leone, president and artistic director of Oral Funk Poetry Productions, will visit campus Thursday, Aug. 29, for \u201cVoices of the People,\u201d the first program of 1619-2019: The Legacy of Black People in America Series.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[50,4,60,5,30,1,7],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56197"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56197"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56197\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":56200,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56197\/revisions\/56200"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56197"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56197"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56197"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}