Feature Poet: Nayo Jones (by Kristalyn Richard)

​Nayo Jones was born on March 19, 1996 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and more particularly, on the West Side. Jones was born to a black mother and a white father, but was mainly raised by her father after her parents divorced when she was young. Her upbringing played a key role in the development of her racial identity as a young adult. Today, she is a spoken word poet and musician. She is a part of the Philadelphia Youth Poetry Movement. Jones makes note that she belongs to the Slytherin house from Harry Potter and she takes ultimate pride in her sexuality, coining herself as a queer black girl. Her intersecting identities are focal points in her work. 

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