eSCAping Type 1

There have only been two times throughout the past 10 months that I’ve wished I was still a teacher. The first was when educators were among the second round of people given the option of receiving the Covid vaccine in the US.* The second was when Amanda Gorman recited her poem, “The Hill We Climb,” during Biden’s inauguration.

If you somehow missed it, please do yourself a favor and click the picture below to watch:

Fun fact: only four U.S. presidents – Kennedy, Clinton, Obama, and now Biden – have had poets read at their inaugurations. And Gorman, at age 22, made history as the youngest ever inaugural poet. Black women making history was such a marvelous highlight of the day.

We’re in an era where writing and speaking skills are often overlooked. A person – especially a 22-year-old girl – is much more likely to gain popularity through sports or singing or social media. I’m sure most people can rattle off the names of 20 athletes or even influencers, but would struggle naming any current authors.

Having a young woman gain instant recognition and respect for reciting an original poem was amazing.

The power of words was so prevalent during the entire ceremony, but were truly highlighted during her performance. According to Gorman (via CBS News):

“Poetry is a weapon. It is an instrument of social change…and poetry is one of the most political arts out there because it demands that you rupture and destabilize the language in which you’re working with. Inherently, you are pushing against the status quo. And so for me, it’s always existed in that tradition of truth-telling.”

Please tell me I’m not the only one in awe right now.

I really hope high schoolers are being exposed to this; I really hope they’re now aware that poetry isn’t just for dead, white guys. I hope they see the importance and impact and artistry of the English language. I hope they’re inspired and motivated and even empowered.

And I hope teachers and parents actually talk about this. Of course, as a former English teacher, I’d encourage you to spend some time analyzing the poem itself. It’s obviously well-written and full of imagery, metaphors, symbolism, and some pretty amazing puns (“We lay down our arms so we can reach out our arms to one another.”). 

But even if all you do is show them her video, that’s enough.

Even if they don’t really listen to her… They’ll still recognize that you felt it was important enough to share that experience with them. They’ll see a young person having an active, positive role in politics. They’ll start to understand that there is more than one way to make an impact on the world.

And maybe they’ll vote for her when she runs in 2036?

---

* I got the first Covid vaccine shot on 1/22 – message me with any questions!