HoodSchool is exited to announce our immensely talented features for our next The People’s Open Mic : I Can’t See Me Without You.

•Jenna Hamed

•Brittany Barker

•Sarah Aziza

•Felicia Cade

We are gathering to share space, art and truth on the love, history & shared struggles of African Diasporic and Palestinian peoples.

We come together in long standing tradition and especially now as those in “power” present false binaries to divide and conquer; we reclaim our strength in fierce solidarity.

Please join us and share your poetry, songs, stories to uplift love, resistance, healing, joy and sorrow. All are welcomed. Tickets in Bio

Uptown4Palestine (U4P) will be hosting a table with info& zines to get connnected!!

U4P is a grassroots group of people from Harlem to the Bronx in solidarity with the Palestinian struggle for liberation. Our immediate demands are a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and the West Bank and an end to the Israeli siege on Gaza. We demand an end to aid to Israel so our tax dollars do not fund death and destruction in Palestine and fund our communities instead.

We prioritize organizing with the multi-racial, multi-ethnic working class in our community and respond to the calls of Palestinians on the ground.

💐Artist Bios 💐

Jenna Hamed is an artist and educator based in Queens. Her lineage extends from Beit Hanina, Jerusalem, Palestine, where her practice intersecting material culture and the written word was seeded.

Sarah Aziza is a Palestinian writer and translator with roots in Deir al-Balah, Gaza. Her work has appeared in the New Yorker, Harper’s, the Baffler, Mizna, and the Nation, among others. Her first book, an experimental memoir exploring the intertwined legacies of diaspora, imperialism, and the American dream, will be published in April 2025”

Felicia Cade is now making waves in Brooklyn, NY. Once dubbed LA’s “Voice of the People,” she’s taken her poetry to iconic stages like London’s “Million Woman’s March” and South London’s “Flo Vortex.” In Ghana, she headlined the National Nkombon Festival, teaching over 40,000 students about the power of poetry.

In NYC, Felicia has won seven slam competitions, hosts at the legendary Nuyorican Poets Cafe, and runs “Langston’s Parlor” in Harlem. She’s a published author and a fierce advocate for Women’s Rights, LGBTQ+ Rights, Social Justice, and Mental Health.

Brittany Barker is an award-winning poet, educator and the Executive Director of Creative Soul House. She works with youth and adults, ages 12-65, teaching them how to harness the power of art and restorative practices to prompt self-discovery and positive social change. Her work in the classroom has been recognized by the Walton Foundation.

Her art has graced many stages such as Lincoln Center, The New Amsterdam Theatre, The Apollo Theatre. Her one-woman show, Standing Upright in the Crooked Room (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roK7RBquxiM) toured cross-states at TheaterlabNYC and Dickinson College in PA, and is the first of many to come. She is a 2022 Pen America Writing As Activism Fellow, ranked 3rd in the world at the 2023 Womxn of the World Poetry Slam and served as coach of Urban Word’s 2024 Youth Slam Team.

In her role as Executive Director of Creative Soul House, Brittany has been an active advocate for community wellness, impacting hundreds of youth and adults, and serving a diverse set of communities, including NYU, Columbia Business School, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, Rutgers University, Twitter, NBCU Comcast, Girls Write Now and DREAM Charter network. Brittany finds inspiration through God, deep interpersonal connections and art spaces.