Raffini
Raffini (she/her) has been educating and enlightening young people most of her life. She is a poet, oral historian and playwright, best known as a member of RI Black Storytellers.
In the 1980s, she started teaching gardening to youth and adults, including Southside Community Land Trust garden workshops. She worked at the UCAP School (the Urban Collaborative Accelerated Program) for 25 years as an arts educator, and managed a program called “Sister to Sister,” which brought young girls of color together to learn their history and discuss how to improve their lives. Raffini says she’s still in contact with most of the graduates of the program.
Her goal, she says, “is to lift young people through education and knowledge of their elders and ancestors – particularly their struggles, contributions and sacrifices – to give youth a positive understanding of their self-worth.”
Every January, RI Black Storytellers hosts Funda Fest around MLK’s birthday. Funda means to learn and to share, and that’s exactly how she lives her life.
(Eye) Am Woman
“(Eye) Am Woman” is a new sculptural bench conceived of by local actor, poet, oral historian, and playwright Raffini. The work offers the public a place to sit and reflect in honor of the many women who have been intentionally marginalized out of historical narratives, everyday women (Drylongso), and for those still experiencing oppression today.
A former educator who has been enlightening young people most of her life, Raffini is also the Director of youth programs at the Southside Community Land Trust and recipient of the 2023 Christiana Carteaux Bannister Award. (Eye) Am Woman has been produced in collaboration with a local tree farmer, a fellow storyteller and author, and Raffini’s sister Stephanie, an artist and youth educator. The site surrounding the bench will be activated on select dates by singers, poets, and storytellers.
On view:
June 24 – September 29, 2025
Roger Williams Park, Providence, Rhode Island 02907
Near Elm Lake at the intersection of F C Green Memorial Blvd and Edgewood Blvd
GPS: 41°46’41.3″N 71°24’36.6″W, Google Map link
Reception:
Tuesday June 29, 3pm – 5pm
Featuring songs, stories and poetry by Sarah Montero, Charlotte Abotsi, Lawrence (Elder) Nunes, and Becky Bass, among others.
Additional Programming:
Tuesday August 26, 3pm – 5pm
Attendance Notes:
Gatherings are free, all ages, and open to the public
Programs are on a natural grass plot with a very slight slope
ADA accessible restroom will be onsite during event hours only
Links:
Southside Community Land Trust
Rhode Island Black Storytellers