abstract: What is driving my applied project are questions derived from lived and observed experiences as an African American female born and raised in Los Angeles California to a non-native of twelve years in Arizona. I recognize situations I have gone through may not have happened if I was not a person of color and a woman. This is also true for Hispanics, Latinos, Native Americans, Pacific Islanders, Asians and other immigrants. The history of America as taught in public, secondary and post-secondary institutions speaks to this truth and raises the questions that I will explore in this document in relation to the process of creating my performance work Movement Speaks. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Dance 2017