During my high school senior years i discovered spoken word poetry. i found it invigorating and the perfect excuse to voice my opinions on matters that i would not normally speak about in public. Conversations such as race, inequality, politics, sex and feminism, that would normally be offensive, were uncovered to the ears of those who would shy away from them. Spoken word poetry was my escape from societies unspoken rules on what one should and shouldn’t speak on in public. It was also the reason that i chose to do this poetry class, other than it fitting a CUNY requirement. One of the spoken word poets that we covered and that i connected with was Elizabeth Acevedo.
Elizabeth Acevedo is a New York times best selling author of the award-winning novel “The Poet x” as well as the holder of other awards. her poets explore the demographics of Dominican people and African people. exploring history and comparing it to now. One of my favorite poems she wrote is entitled “Hair” . With its strong meanings, such as appreciation of past; slavery and self love, in my opinion it is one of her best poems. Having natural hair like her, i find myself connecting with her messages on a more personal level. I would describe spoken word poetry as song without any musical background, just the lyrics, flowing to the speakers own rhythm.
