“Everything that I am and will ever be stems from the strength and courage of my Granny Annie. She is the super woman I admire the most in this world.” --- Devon Jones

Annie Thomas left her husband at a time when separation and divorce were unheard of, in order to
show her children self-respect. Took in and raised nephews, nieces, grandchildren and parents when no one else would. Supported 5 other people plus their children on a Nurse’s salary in the Caribbean. She is the Epitome of a woman.

Growing up in Winnipeg, Mb was anything but simple for Devon. She faced racism, sexism and
discrimination on a daily basis. From the school grounds to family gatherings her dark skin tone
kept her quiet and alone. She received mixed messages from the adults around her. An auntie
telling her to “punch them in the mouth” if they call you names, while another told her to walk away and her mother stayed silent. This part of her is most directly seen in her character D’Dee, The Black Girl Lost.

In her eighth grade English class she was told her poetry was amazing but disturbing. Devon took
that as a compliment and fell in love with writing poetry as a way to release her inner most thoughts and emotions.

At Eighteen (18), Devon was determined to control her own destiny. She did her research and learned that the University of Windsor had the number one women’s track team in Canada. She filled out the forms and held a meeting with her parents to discuss the possibilities. In Augus 1996,

Devon’s parents dropped her off at the U of Windsor to begin her university career.It was in her 1st year of university (1997) that Devon went to her first poetry event. The event was called Aphrodisiac, put on by the Black Students Association. Encouraged by her friends she read her poem “Hey Now” which was well received and ignited her desire to perform. After this first performance she was asked to perform in Windsor and Detroit. Her D’Troit character was influenced by her 4 years living, learning and working in the Windsor/D’Troit area.

“Poetry is Therapy to me. In performing live on stage, it’s like facing your worst fear head on and conquering it. Sometimes you have to perform a poem 3 to 4 times before it really penetrates you on that deeper level to finally heal that wound.”

Labelled “the bad girl of Poetry” for her explicit sexual lyrics, refers to her most recognized character D’Licious. The whole idea of the “The Split” is based around encompassing all different aspects of the black woman. The Split’s characters take each aspect of her personality and take it to the extreme. Sexuality is part of everyday life so it NEEDS to be discussed candidly.

Devon is a writer of poetry and is currently working on her first novel. She is a producer of Violated”, her first spoken word video. Made to conquer her demons and encourage young females to tell their stories.

She is made by her experience of being a dark-skinned, Caribbean- Canadian Female.