Mainstream media is cluttered with misogynistic visions of scantily clad women parading around on TV screens and the pages of magazines. It is that portrayal of women the second annual Hiphop Expo looks to address.
Keynote speaker Michaela Angela Davis and poet Ursula Rucker will be featured at the event this year. Both are prominent female figures in the hip-hop sphere and outspoken about the treatment and perception of women in the genre.
This is an opportunity to engage in (gender) issues and to tease out that sexism and misogyny weren't created in hip-hop - that this is part of the larger culture
said Akil Houston, assistant professor of African American Studies and co-coordinator of the event.
Davis is best known as a fashion editor for Essence and Honey magazines as well as for her involvement in the Take Back the Music campaign. The other featured presenter, Rucker, is a prominent poet, and has recorded several original songs including Supernatural.
The expo will begin with the keynote address from Davis and Rucker followed by sessions led by each. Next will be a 'Speak Out' where members of the audience, as well as those who tweet their questions, will be able to voice their views on women in hip-hop. The evening will close with a poetry reading from Rucker and a portion where other poets are allowed to share.
The expo doesn't focus solely on why the negative portrayals of women are bad, but also notes the positive contributions women in hip-hop have made, said Ayanna Jordan, director of Upward Bound and co-coordinator of the expo.
A lot of times we don't celebrate the positive contributions women have made to the culture she said.
The expo was made possible by a grant from Arts for Ohio along with SAC funding. Other sponsors include the African American Studies Department, the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Education, Hip-Hop congress, Upward Bound, Women's and Gender Studies and Student Senate.
The expo will be held from 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. in Grover Center W115.
Those who cannot attend the expo can stream the expo on their computers from the event's Web site, http://www.ohio.edu/aas/hiphop/. A full itinerary can also be seen there.
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Rosie Haney
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Michaela Angela Davis (PROVIDED)
