By Sarah Stortz
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On Tuesday in Uptown Bill’s Coffeehouse, 730 S. Dubuque St., several different people of diverse nationalities stood on the same tiny stage to reveal their personal struggles through spoken word.

As a part of Domestic Violence Awareness Month, artists of color performed in “Surviving in Color: Persisting and Resisting Violence,” a spoken-word event created to promote empowerment and healing among marginalized groups in Iowa City.

The event was a collaboration between the Women’s Resource and Action Center and Monsoon United Asian Women of Iowa. The event is also Advantage-Iowa approved by the Center for Diversity and Enrichment, meaning recipients of the scholarship can receive credit for attending the event. Participants could email their work weeks ahead before presenting.

UI senior Tanvi Yenna, who works as a peer-to-peer & outreach advocate for Monsoon, was one of the main organizers of the event.

In the months leading up to October, the planning-committee members discussed what they could provide for the community during the month. Yenna said there’s a wide array of opportunities in Iowa City for artists to showcase their work, such as the City of Literature, but people of color were often underrepresented.

“We feel it’s important for people of color to talk about their communities,” Yenna said.

Tom Gilsenan, the owner of Uptown Bill’s, said his venue has a history of promoting social justice.

“What you hope, of course, the people who come are influenced or stirred up,” he said. “You also hope each of them will go off into the community and keep that message with them.”

Gilsenan was more than happy to have so many different voices echo in his coffeehouse.

“We’re thrilled to host this,” he said. “It fits very well with our mission, and we’re looking forward to a great evening of wisdom, truth, and understanding.”

UI senior Shanea Condon read two pieces of writing, one original work and a poem titled “I Am Learning to Be a Flower,” by Dominque Ashaheed.

Her piece was inspired by her experience being adopted into a transracial family as a Chinese immigrant.

“In the piece, I talked about different microaggressions from my own white family, as well as my white peers and the community I grew up in,” Condon said. “[I talked] about surviving and learning how to find myself, despite not knowing where I came from or who I really am.”

She also read Ashaheed’s poem because it focused on self-acceptance.

“To me, the poem is about learning to love yourself, learning to be gentle with yourself, and learning to take care of yourself,” Condon said.

Iowa City resident Katherina Thai read her poem “Traps,” which was inspired by an abusive relationship she had experienced.

“I felt like that piece really touched on domestic violence,” she said. “I think it shows a story on getting out of a bad relationship as well.”

Yenna said she encouraged people of every background to attend the event, hoping they could learn what the artists continually struggle with on a daily basis.

“Hearing voices from marginalized groups is the best way to learn,” Yenna said.