Paula Lindo – Our histories, stories, present, future.

Girl Be Heard Unplugged at the Little Carib Theatre on March 14 showcased the results of the Girl Be Heard project, a women-led empowerment program which uses socially conscious theatre-making to develop, amplify and celebrate the voices of young women, currently being carried out at Bishops Centenary High School in Port of Spain.

Fifteen students, along with their teachers, actress Penelope Spencer and spoken word poet Deneka Thomas, performed spoken word pieces and songs which they had written and composed over the course of the program.
I Am Who, I Am Me, was the title of the first piece where the girls introduced themselves. It was startling and refreshing to hear some of the girls proclaim that they never got noticed, but nevertheless were full of grace, favour and positivity, sweet and weird at the same time.
The performances by Hanna Parris, Karissa Ali, Tahirah Williams, Delicia Williams, Kimerly Fiddler, Shania Wills, Jamilya Bunting, Jadan Pencome, Shenelle Vincent, Debra Daniel, Aaliyah Holder, Jaqueling Frauenfelder Haynes and Tishauna Jones spoke of their wish to be brave in a world that was hostile to them in many ways, but having to contend with fear of what would happen to them if they were brave. The topics touched on included fear of being raped, kidnapped and trafficked, suicide, growing up in an orphanage, family, sexuality, rape culture, control, victim-blaming, working towards a better future, togetherness, black women, peace and hope.
Thomas said it wasn’t easy for the girls to come out on stage and face the audience because they had so much fear. She said the topics explored were the realities the girls faced as young people in T&T. She said as teachers, they were trying to inspire and empower young women
The girls said Girl Be Heard gave them a sense of connection and was changing their lives for the better. Spencer said Trinidad needs a sense of family and she was glad the program was giving the girls a chance to celebrate themselves and be proud in their own skins.
Notable moments included singalongs to Family by Jamilya Bunting and Birth of a Nation by Aaliyah Holder and Jaqueline Frauenfelder Haynes. The latter brought tears to the eyes of members of the audience as the girls sang their chorus “we’re fighting this way for a nation where sticks and stones break no more,” leading the audience to call them back for an encore.
The final group piece encouraged the girls and the audience to fight for their dreams and their identity with the tag line “You can be You.”
Both teachers said their favourite times with the girls were when they were relaxing after class and the girls could ask them questions and open up to them about the issues they were facing in their lives.
Girl Be Heard co-founder Jessica Greer Morris said she was immensely proud of the girls and the staff of the program and grateful that she has been able to work with them. “Part of the development work is you don’t micromanage the people on the ground, so really all we’ve done is teacher training and shared methodology and look at what they’ve done in less than three months. If we can do this in three months, just imagine what we can do in three years.” She thanked the parents of the girls and the teachers at the school, as she said the program would not have progressed as well without their support.
Morris said her future plans for the program include job creation, as has happened with the original program in New York. “Thirty percent of our alumni are teaching artists in Girl Be Heard and our dream is to do the same thing and scale up eventually and to pay artists and activists fairly for their incredible work.”
Many of the audience members, especially the women, expressed a wish that they could have had a similar program available to them when they were growing up.