Conscious Women Rock the Page

MEDIA ANNOUNCEMENT

Conscious Women Rock the Page: Activists Team Up to Publish Curriculum that Uses Hip Hop Fiction to Explore Social Issues and Promote Political Action

WHAT:

To support educators who wish to use hip hop fiction in their classrooms to explore social issues and promote activism among their students, four women have teamed up to publish a curriculum entitled Conscious Women Rock the Page: Using Hip Hop Fiction to Incite Social Change (C♀RP.)
C♀RP is based on three hip hop novels praised for their treatment of substantive issues from race relations to dating violence in a genre often criticized for glorifying street life and perpetuating stereotypes. The curriculum contains over thirty lessons which are appropriate for use in middle school classrooms through university campuses. The novels upon which C♀RP is based are:
That White Girl The debut novel of JLove , inspired by her own coming-of-age as a young White woman in Denver in the 80s which included becoming a graffiti artist and joining the local Crips.
The Sista Hood: On the Mic by E-Fierce is the first in a four-part series about four girls of color at a San Francisco high school who bond across their differences in race, class and sexual orientation through hip hop.
Picture Me Rollin’ The second of three novels by Black Artemis , brings a feminist twist to the “felon-come-home” tale as it follows a young Latina who is obsessed with Tupac Shakur in her uphill battle to rebuild her life.
C♀RPcontains lessons on multiple subjects and disciplines including English, social studies, ethnic studies, race relations, women’s studies, criminal justice and health and sexuality to name just a few.

WHO:

C♀RP is a collaboration among four women known in socially conscious hip hop circles: Jennifer “JLOVE” Calderón, author of That White Girl; Elisha “E-Fierce” Miranda, author of The Sista Hood; Sofía “Black Artemis” Quintero, author of Picture Me Rollin’; and Marcella Runell Hall , co-editor of The Hip Hop Education Guidebook. They have also enlisted a diverse team of activist educators to design lessons. The activities in C♀RP spark discussions on issues such as race, gender, class, sexual orientation and more.

WHEN:

Conscious Women Rock the Pagewill be available in late March 2008.

WHERE:

The creators Black Artemis, E-Fierce, JLove and Marcella released the curriculum and demonstrated a sample lesson at the annual Women, Action and the Media Conference in Cambridge, MA, March 28-30, 2008. Since then we've traveled across the country to various universities and conferences. For more information about BOOKING them to come to your school, event or conference EMAIL US @ [email protected].

WHY:

Committed educators are always searching for ways to strike the balance between meeting students where they are yet bringing them to a higher level academically, socially and even emotionally. As a result, many are incorporating hip hop in their lessons from using rap songs to teach metaphors and similes to looking at the recording industry to impart lessons in economics.
Street lit – often called “hip hop fiction” – is immensely popular and credited for getting reluctant students to read. However, conscientious educators hesitate to use it as it frequently glorifies street life and perpetuates negative stereotypes. Whether they are middle and high school teachers, after-school program facilitators, community activists at grassroots organizations or college professors, C♀RP is a curriculum for educators who want to introduce popular media in their learning environments to engage their students on meaningful social and political issues, facilitate their empowerment, and inspire them to take action.
That White Girl, The Sista Hood and Picture Me Rollin’ each possess a commercial sensibility that will appeal to students of all backgrounds yet also raises substantive issues in a non-didactic manner. That makes these novels ideal for classroom use. C♀RP shows educators exactly how.
Mainstream media only covers about 2% of what Hip Hop culture is really about. The authors of Conscious Women have assembled their collective knowledge, experience and insights to offer you access to the other 98%--or at least set you upon the right path. Necessary and long overdue, I couldn't suggest a stronger, more integrity filled team of artist-activists to do the job. Get prepared for an eye-opening journey!"
Toni Blackman
U.S. Hip Hop Ambassador/Artist
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The revolution is coming and its advance guard will be powerfully conscious and self-reflexive women of the Hip-Hop generation! The struggle ahead demands a fist inside our hearts, and a critical way to re-envision ourselves as active agents for social justice. Read Conscious Women and join the revolution."
Peter McLaren
author of Che Guevara, Paulo Freire, and the Struggle for Revolution
Professor, University of California, Los Angeles
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This is the next needed text for keeping hip-hop in today's classroom.
Kenji Jasper, editor of Beats, Rhymes and Life: What We Love and Hate About Hip Hop
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Among our new, emerging and dynamic community of educators that come with rich ideas and fresh approaches to instruction, it goes without saying that Hip Hop's cultural and oral tradition is an effective, yet often overlooked key to culturally responsive teaching and the "liberation through education" approach. This book, ironically created by an equally overlooked segment of the Hip Hop community -- its women -- is right on time with activities that allow for critical analysis, engaging, active learning, and non-traditional forms of assessment, perfect for meeting the varied needs of the students we serve. Congrats and Many Thanks to these sisters for a job well done!
Gabriel "Asheru" Benn, M.Ed, educator, MC, Founder of Guerilla Arts Ink, and co-founder of Educational Lyrics, publishers of H.E.L.P.: The Hip Hop Educational Literacy Program.
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In the tradition of great lifestyle movements that speak to the aestetic of our gender, Conscious Women Rock the Page...has woven our experiences and fantasies into tools that identify social injustice & change, sexism & adoration, field hollers & corporate shieks and basically a voice to proclaim to our daughters through codes that we still matter. It Boldly Supports the Daring Declaration that We still matter! This work is the Equivelant of a generation x, y and z's Women Who Dance with the Wolves.
Nicole Duncan-Smith, Youth Media & Brand Specialist, Pop Culture Lecturer, Producer & Author, author of I Am Hip-Hop and producer for Blokhedz animated movie
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"'Conscious Women Rock the Page' is today's Hip Hop revolutionary instrument for all classrooms worldwide! It is written by beautiful conscious women who are not just "in the know²" about political and social conflicts; they are in the trenches fighting for the revolution everyday. This is an important guide for all educators, mentors and activists dedicated to utilizing Hip Hop as an essential tool to help create awareness and discussion about various social issues and injustices such as racism, sexism and homophobia. This book is more than just a ³curriculum²; it is a journey that will not only inspire your students to fight for social change, but will also motivate teachers to want to be more involved. ³
DJ Kuttin Kandi of 5th Platoon, Anomolies, R.E.A.C.Hip-Hop, Gabriela Network and The Women¹s Center at the University of California, San Diego
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“What if every novel came with a set of lesson plans to help inspire the reader to make a positive difference? Not only would our humble masterpieces live longer and travel much further than the page can take us, but so would we...Cool and Crucial, this collective work is not only a resource guide for the Hip Hop generation, but for the educators, nurturers, secret fans, haters, and capitalists of the Culture. There is something in these pages for everyone (women, men, fans and activists alike) seeking new tools with which to construct a better life and world. And for those who aren't quite ready, it is a timely nudge in a hip and healthy direction.”
Queen GodIs critically acclaimed debut album Power U!, International Performance Artist: Hip Hop, Theater, Spoken Word, Educator and Founder of Queen GodIs University in Brooklyn, NY
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“A groundbreaking curriculum! The ladies of Conscious Women Rock the Page are taking Hip- Hop and education to new heights. The fact is that our youth read and love Hip-Hop fiction, and they have a strong connection to these stories whether they connect to the environment, drama or a character. Conscious Women Rock the Page is a great tool to help educators engage and learn about their students, while combining English Language Arts and life skills as a way to look at adversity, privilege, and social justice in a fresh perspective. Conscious women not only rocks the page, it also freaks the system.”
Martha Diaz, Filmmaker, Social Entrepreneur, Founder and President of the Hip-Hop Association
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“Conscious Women Rock the Page: Using Hip-Hop Fiction to Incite Social Change offers voices that are strong, thoughtful and completely organic to the culture of Hip-Hop,without a hint of pandering or condescension. Their words engage students on their own terms, and give them the tools they need to think critically about the world as it is…and as it could be.”
Joe G. Schloss, Ph.D., Visiting Scholar and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Music, New York University Author of Making Beats: The Art of Sample-Based Hip-Hop, and Foundation: B-Boys, B-Girls, and Hip-Hop Culture in New York
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“As the literature and curriculum of Hip-Hop begins to crystallize nationally and internationally, Conscious Women sets its marker at a critical juncture in history. This bright and talented group of writers are helping to redefine education while challenging notions of gender in cultural leadership and Hip-Hop intellectualism.”
Shamako Noble, Executive Director and President of Hip-Hop Congress and CEO of Rondavoux Records.
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"Through the artful use of novels, self reflection, and lyrics, Conscious Women Rock the Page once again demonstrates how Hip Hop has come of age as a powerful source for both social and educational change. If you are interested in harnessing the power of Hip Hop culture to teach for social justice, rock your classroom with Conscious Women Rock the Page."
Wayne Au is a contributing editor for the social justice teaching journal, Rethinking Schools, and is an assistant professor of secondary education at California State University, Fullerton
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