21 January 2021 - Youth poet laureate Amanda Gorman reads The Hill We Climb at Biden inauguration
Amanda Gorman’s Inaugural Poem Is a Stunning Vision of Democracy
Masha Gessen (The New Yorker, 21/01/2021)
Among the firsts in Amanda Gorman’s inaugural poem, “The Hill We Climb,” is the concept of democracy that it assumed. Democracy, according to the twenty-two-year-old poet, is an aspiration—a thing of the future.
The word “democracy” first appears in the same verse in which Gorman refers to “a force that would shatter our nation rather than share it.” The insurrection at the Capitol on January 6th took place while Gorman was working on the poem, although the “force,” one may assume, is bigger than the insurrection—it is the Trump Presidency that made the insurrection possible, and the forces of white supremacy and inequality that enabled that Presidency itself—“it / Would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy / And this effort very nearly succeeded” the poem continues. “But while democracy can be periodically delayed / it can never be permanently defeated.”
Meet 22-year-old Amanda Gorman, the youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history
Jennifer Liu (CNBC, 20/01/2021)
Amanda Gorman became the youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history when she recited her poem “The Hill We Climb” at President Joe Biden’s swearing-in ceremony Wednesday.
The 22-year-old Los Angeles resident and daughter of a school teacher began writing at an early age in an attempt to cope with a speech impediment. Her writing practice took off, and at age 14, she joined WriteGirl, an LA-based nonprofit that helps teen girls discover the power of their voice through creative writing. Gorman credits the support of the group for allowing her to chase her dreams as a writer, reports CBS Los Angeles.
Hillary Clinton tells Biden’s inaugural poet to run for president amid wave of praise
Graeme Massie (The Independent, 20/01/2021)
Hillary Clinton has praised inauguration poet Amanda Gorman and says she should one day run for president.
Ms Gorman made history as the youngest poet in modern history to read one of their works at a presidential inauguration.
The Los Angeles native read her poem, titled “The Hill We Climb” to Joe Biden and Kamala Harris at the Capitol ceremony.
The Hill We Climb: the Amanda Gorman poem that stole the inauguration show
Amanda Gorman (The Guardian, 20/01/2021)
When day comes, we ask ourselves where can we find light in this never-ending shade?
The loss we carry, a sea we must wade.
We’ve braved the belly of the beast.
We’ve learned that quiet isn’t always peace,
and the norms and notions of what “just” is isn’t always justice.
And yet, the dawn is ours before we knew it.
Somehow we do it.
Somehow we’ve weathered and witnessed a nation that isn’t broken,
but simply unfinished.
We, the successors of a country and a time where a skinny Black girl descended from slaves and raised by a single mother can dream of becoming president, only to find herself reciting for one.