"Black Girl with the short kinky twirl,
One I could twirl,
I am the pretty BLACK GIRL in the RING."
Linisa George is a creative outburst of energy. Born
in Guyana, Linisa migrated with her family to Antigua, the island where she
calls home, at the tender age of 4. She wrote in secret from the age of 6; her
poems were her escape from a world that she didn’t think she fit into. It
wasn’t until 2003 while living in Toronto where she discovered the writings of the
amazing Maya Angelou, that she realised that her life’s fulfillment was masked
in her words. Linisa moved back to Antigua in 2005, where after many false
starts she was able to push start her career in the literary and performing
arts. She is a poet, freelance writer, director and playwright.
A strong advocate for gender justice, she is
an Executive member of Women of Antigua (WOA), a non-profit organization established
in January 2008 that were responsible for bringing The Vagina Monologues to
Antigua, and spear heading the compilation of the original play When A Woman
Moans; monologues written by Antiguan women that tackle the subject matters of
rape, death, child birth, domestic violence, abortion and sexual freedom. She
is co-owner of a creative arts company, August Rush Productions, and the
Director of The Young Poets Society of Antigua & Barbuda. The latter is an
organization that uses poetry to awaken the creative elements in young people ages 12 to 18. Linisa is co-creator of Expressions; ‘Poetry In The Pub’, a bi-monthly
open mic event that highlights the local talent of spoken word artists and
musicians on the island. She has won three National Youth Awards in Antigua: two for Literary Arts (2010 and 2012) and one for Youth Activism -WOA (2012).
"I believe in light and darkness. I am a work in progress and I embrace the lessons taught, both the good and bad. I want to achieve everything, so I try my hand at everything. I know I will fail at many things, but failure is the catalyst of success. I've always been the black girl in the ring, and after years of struggling with that identity I am proud to say it isn't something I'd change."