Monday, November 10, 2014

Dometi Pongo: Transporting students from Venice, IL, to NYC

Participants at Venice Elementary reading and listening to Dometi Pongo's "C.H.I. to NYC"

Some years ago, one of my leading participants was Dometi Pongo, this gifted young scholar and talented artist who happened to attend school at SIUE. One of the wisest decisions I made, with his help, was making sure to grab a few recordings of him performing his work.

Earlier today, I hosted a poetry exhibit and listening session at Venice Elementary School for about 40 of the students there. The session poems and audio recordings by various artists, including Gwendolyn Brooks, Sonia Sanchez, Maya Angelou, Nikki Giovanni, and, yes, our guy Dometi.

The students really enjoyed hearing Dometi's rap (poem?) about his experiences in NYC. Venice is a small town with less than 2,000 residents. But for a moment, listening to Dometi, we were all transported to the big city.

Related:
Mixed Media Poetry Exhibits

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