I am Tricia aka Lady Terror. I am a poet, performance artist and spectacle maker. Born and raised in Chicago, I have worked with not for profits for over 20 years as a teaching artist, community advocate and poet. I believe that poetry heals and true liberation comes from creativity and a do it yourself mentality. I have performed poetry, theater and spectacles all over Chicago and Atlanta. My work has appeared at Northwestern University, Emory University, DePaul University, Columbia College Chicago, Peace Corps Morocco, North Africa, hundreds of Chicago Public Schools and street corners.

 My work has recently been influenced by Liberation Theology. It is a school of thought that explores the relationship between Christian theology and political activism, particularly in areas of social justice, poverty, and human rights. The main methodology of liberation theology is to do theology (i.e. speak of God) from the viewpoint of the economically poor and oppressed of the human community. I call my work Creative Empowerment and Justice Spectacles and believe that spirituality can fuel an individual and community to reach its full potential.

 I have been chosen from a large pool of applicants to attend the Black Theology and Leadership Institute at Princeton Theological Seminary in Princeton, New Jersey. It is a weeklong intensive for clergy and laity for training, worship, and fellowship. The Institute is designed for clergy and lay leaders who would like to deepen their thinking and preaching by learning from preeminent scholars of theology and religion.

I am raising funds to help fund my rooming, boarding and airline fees. This experience will allow me to grow the community work I have been doing for close to 20 years. The teachers presenting for the Institute are some of the most prominent thinkers in the country, with professors from Duke University and University of Chicago in attendance. 

 I am currently also applying to the Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia to study Theology and The Arts and believe this summer experience will help catapult my career of service to the next level. What I learn and experience at this Institute will be used to guide my performance work and be shared with the community, on street corners, schools and in alternative spaces, in community driven spectacles that have a mission of healing and transformation.

 Any amount is a blessing and it is a direct way to support art and communities in healing themselves. I am grateful for all the love so many of you have shown Lady Terror in the past. I am nothing without the community members who write poetry with me, come to my shows and spread the word about Lady Terror: "the lady who stands on street corners with a bullhorn and soapbox screaming about oppression and love."

Learn more about the Lady Terror mission at: www.ladyterror.blogspot.com