Poet, performer and Black activist Kyla Jenee Lacey to perform at CMU's Opperman Auditorium
CMU students walk past the Park Library, Wednesday, Feb 1, on the campus of Central Michigan University. The library is always a busy place on campus for students to study, read some books, or just hang out.
Poet, performer and Black activist Kyla Jenee Lacey will be performing on campus from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Feb. 8 Park Library’s Opperman Auditorium as part of the Multicultural Academic Student Services’ (MASS) Black History Month events.
Born in the Midwest, but raised in Central Florida, Lacey graduated from the University of Central Florida with a degree in history but also studied foreign languages during her time in the Sunshine State, Lacey's website said.
Lacey’s work focuses largely around Black activism and Feminism and is best known for her spoken word poem titled “White Privilege”. Her spoken word video has over 350,000 views on Youtube and has gone viral a few times, but might have gained the most significant exposure when a Tennessee teacher was fired after showing the video in class back in 2021.
Hosted by Central Michigan University’s Program Board, the student-led organization was first introduced to Lacey at the National Association for Campus Activities (NACA) conference last fall.
“(Program Board) saw her at a conference that we went to,” Program Board Lecture Director Lauren Rupe said. “It was called NACA. We just really enjoyed her, the audience really enjoyed her so we thought that she'd be perfect to bring to CMU’s campus.”
According to cmich.edu, Black History Month 2023's theme on campus is "Black resistance," and Kyla's subject matter aligns with that theme.
“Getting [Black] voices heard on campus and giving them that kind of outlet," Rupe said. “I feel like she speaks to much of what people have to say.”
According to her website, Lacey has performed at over 300 colleges in more than 40 states and her poetry has been viewed over 50 million times on platforms like Buzzfeed, Afropunk, In the Now and many more. She has also been featured on news sites such as The New York Times, the Atlantic and the Washington Post.
Lacey is also very active on social media and has recently found a new hobby in wall art, which according to her website, has garnered a good amount of online attention itself. Her work can be found on her website.
People who plan on attending the event must RSVP here.
