Friends of the Unity Center

Reza Corinne Clifton

Reza Corinne Clifton is the creator, publisher and editor of RezaRitesRi.com, a RI-based website promoting ethnically, artistically, and socially diverse voices. Faithful to its RI roots, but considerate of its broad reach, the site recognizes and celebrates the presence and countless contributions of people of color, young people, women, local artists, grassroots leaders and other people generally and systematically underrepresented in the public sphere. Visitors to the site will find full-length articles and interviews, exclusive photographs, thoughtfully-selected event listings, original podcasts, informative and interesting links, and more.

Reza has been recognized for leadership in different organizations doing grassroots community work in Providence and social justice work across college campuses, for academic achievements earned at the University of Rhode Island, and for her "emancipatory journalism" which has appeared in radio, print, and online. She was a keynote speaker at the Unity Center's 2007 Journey to the Motherland: Black History Month Dinner and Awards Ceremony.

Samantha Raheem Thornhill

An amazing woman with an amazing spirit. Her spoken word and spoken heart can take you on a voyage to places you never thought your mind could go.

Samantha hosted an amazing workshop on the Power of Women and word at the Sister to Sister conference. She also gave an excellent kenynote luncheon spoken work performance.

Marquis L. Mix a.k.a. 13 of Nazareth

13 performed at the First Word As Born held at Rhode Island College. He also facilitated an amazing leadership and spoken word workshops at the Unity Center hosted Brother to Brother and Sister to Sister Leadership Conference in 2004. A truly gifted individual who inspires others with his use of spoken word.

This spoken word artist/ emcee from Norfolk, VA began writing rhymes shortly after his 20th birthday in September of 1996. He nervously stepped before an audience of about eight people for the first time at Soul Café in Tropical Delights in Virginia Beach, VA and has since performed at clubs, cafes, theatres, and colleges up and down the east coast. From Springfield, MASS to Miami, FL the voice of 13 has moved the spirits of audiences with love, compassion, fear, pain, clever wordplay and truth as he knows spoken from depths of his very soul. His work ranges from the use of beautiful abstract imagery in the conveyance of universal concepts to the very concrete sometimes painful and horrific aspects of our history and our now. 13’s seemingly effortless writing ability has garnered an immense level of respect among his peers in this modern spoken word movement. The famed question though has nothing to do with 13’s accomplishments and everything to do with his name. People always ask where the name 13 originated. Well, in short his grandmother gave birth to his mother at the young and tender age of 13. His mother gave birth to him on the 13th day of September and ironically gave him a name with; you guess it, 13 letters. Subsequently and just as poetic both his mother and grandmother both passed on when he was just 13 years old. Marquis Lee Mix will and has told anyone who inquires “I did not choose 13, 13 choose me.”

Cbabi Bayoc

www.bayocstudio.com/

Kumiko Mckee

www.kumiko-art.com