The fourth annual literacy celebration Our Voices: Festival of Words returns Thursday through Saturday, with three days of events hosted by Fort Lauderdale poet, playwright and educator Darius Daughtry’s nonprofit Art Prevails Project.
Along with myriad activities (most of them free) aimed at exposing young minds to the power and potential of the written word, the festival will include readings from prominent voices, including Grammy-nominated surrealist blues poet and performer Aja Monet, poet Richard Blanco and prize-winning novelist Fabienne Josaphat. Events will take place in Fort Lauderdale and Pompano Beach.
Daughtry has been a longtime champion of the arts as a catalyst for empowerment and social change, calling art “the language of healing.”
“This festival is deeply personal to me,” Daughtry says in a statement. “Growing up in the Sistrunk neighborhood, I understand the challenges this community faces: the stigmas, the blighted buildings and the struggles within local schools. Holding this festival close to my roots allows us to highlight the beauty, creativity and brilliance that exist within this community.”
Phillip Dunlap, director of the Broward County Cultural Division, says Our Voices is a vivid example of how the arts can encourage communities to become more creative and connected.
“By creating space for diverse voices and shared experiences, initiatives like this expand access to arts and culture while nurturing the next generation of storytellers and readers,” Dunlap says.
Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel
Darius Daughtry, founder of Our Voices: Festival of Words, is shown at Delevoe Park in Fort Lauderdale, where he grew up in the city’s Sistrunk neighborhood. (Amy Beth Bennett/South Florida Sun Sentinel file)
Our Voices: Festival of Words will include:
Lit Lounge: Opening reception at 7 p.m. Thursday at the African American Research Library and Cultural Center, 2650 Sistrunk Blvd., Fort Lauderdale. The evening of food, refreshments and entertainment will be hosted by poet, rapper and singer Marnino Toussaint. Performers will include Inez Barlatier, Bertrand Boyd, Tif Clare, Marlo Vashti, DP Soul and David H. Hepburn. Tickets: $40. Visit OurVoicesFest.com/litlounge.
An Evening With …: 7-9 p.m. Friday in the Bienes gallery at the Broward County Main Library, 100 S. Andrews Ave., Fort Lauderdale, featuring Aja Monet in conversation with WLRN journalist Wilkine Brutus. Monet’s “When the Poems Do What They Do” was a Grammy Award nominee in 2024 for Best Spoken Word Poetry Album, and she is the author of the 2025 poetry collection “Florida Water.” Her second studio album, “The Color of Rain,” is scheduled for release in May. Admission: Free.
Festival of Words: 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday at Ali Cultural Arts Center, 353 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Pompano Beach. Highlights include the Children’s Village, book giveaways, poetry readings, storytelling, workshops, film screenings and food trucks. Winner of PEN America’s Bellwether Prize for her widely praised novel “Kingdom of No Tomorrow,” Fabienne Josaphat will lead a workshop at noon; former U.S. presidential inaugural poet Richard Blanco will read and discuss his work (with journalist Carlos Frias) beginning at 1 p.m.; and Aja Monet returns to talk about her creative process at 3:30 p.m. Admission: Free.
Information: OurVoicesFest.com
Staff writer Ben Crandell can be reached at bcrandell@sunsentinel.com. Follow on IG: @BenCrandell.