Perry DiVirgillio and Kavi Ade
This year’s Black History Month commemorative event, Mending Masculinity, is scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 21, in HBC Gifford Auditorium at 7 p.m. The event features poetic expressions by Philadelphia-based poets Kavindu “Kavi” Ade and Perry “Vision” DiVirgillio. The event is free and open to the public.
Ade is a writer, activist and arts educator. Their work grapples with the reality of being a Black-Trans-Queer body set at the threshold of violence. DiVirgillio is a poet, activist and youth poetry educator whose poetry has been featured on CNN’s “Black in America 5,” the highest rated documentary in CNN history. They have co-coached the Philly Youth Poetry Slam Team and toured more than 80 colleges and universities together.
Through their work, DiVirgillio and Ade create art to task men and masculine-of-center folks of all journeys to unpack, heal and create a path to whole masculinities. The spoken word duo’s poems focus on gender, sexuality, multicultural identity, race, violence, street harassment, sexual assault, education, homophobia/transphobia and more. They also use critical dialogue and generative writing workshops to cultivate a conversation that encompasses all forms of masculinity, the performance of gender, and the inherent toxicity of gendered binaries in a patriarchal world.
“Spoken word poetry is the voice of the voiceless and has taken on many forms of artistic expression over the years. Kavi and Vision are covering topics that are challenging, engaging, and inspiring within our community,” says Cedric T. Bolton, coordinator of student engagement in the Office of Multicultural Affairs and chair of the Black History Month Committee.
The event is co-sponsored by the Office of Multicultural Affairs, Black Graduate Student Association and the Black History Month Committee.
For more information, including a complete list of events and programs, visit the Office of Multicultural Affairs website or contact Bolton at 315.443.9676.
