A poetry slam and a workshop by Brown Girl Woke are promoting awareness of domestic violence where the young and old can voice their thoughts on the issue in a more creative manner.

Moefiainu Daisy Lavea-Timo from the villages of Vailuutai, Samatau, Saipipi and Lepa, is the facilitator of the poetry workshop. She said this is a special way youths can share their stories and express themselves.

“This is always about young people’s voices and amplifying their voices. We understand the beauty of poetry because we as Samoans and orators by culture are how we have always told our stories,” she said. 

“Poetry is a way the young people can share their dreams and aspirations of who we are for our families, villages, country and ourselves.” 

She said poetry for her started with evening prayers every night with her father who made their family read the Psalms. She competed in the national New Zealand Poetry Slam in 2017 and got first place. 

Now she is back in Samoa to help grow the art of poetry in young people as it has been beneficial for her.

“Poetry is a way we can sit in uncomfortable spaces and tell stories. It’s also a way we can find healing when we share our truth. It can be liberating for someone else listening,” she said. 

“Poetry workshops and the poetry slams raise awareness on domestic violence. Brown Girl Woke tries to amplify the voices of Samoan youth to tell their stories, hopes and aspirations for Samoa and communities through this workshop.”

Princevaa Lalovi, 22, who was part of the first poetry workshop and is now a facilitator for the program won last year’s poetry slam and is grateful for the platform Brown Girl Woke provides for youth to share their thoughts with the use of poetry.

“It’s like downloading your thoughts and opinions and turning them into a poem. You can find inspiration anywhere and it can be done anywhere," he said. "I can stand here and look at something beautiful and then formulate my poem and then download from thoughts and feelings to make a poem.

“For me, I do most of my poems in Samoan, because for me personally I want the Samoan youth to capture a message from my poem when it is in my native tongue.” 

A poetry slam is a competitive art event in which poets perform spoken word poetry before a live audience and a panel of judges. While formats can vary, slams are often loud and lively, with audience participation, cheering and dramatic delivery. Hip-hop music and urban culture are strong influences, and the backgrounds of the participants tend to be diverse.