The young American poet Amanda Gorman fights against oppression and racism. She has been world famous since her appearance at Joe Biden’s inauguration. Your future could be great.
At the moment things are going really well for Amanda Gorman: At the inauguration of US President Joe Biden, she recited a highly acclaimed poem, as well as at the American TV event of the year at the beginning of February: the Super Bowl, the final of the US Football League . Her books, which are due to appear in the course of the year, are massively pre-ordered. And yes, she also has a contract with a New York model and talent agency.
Poet with role model function
The young poet has a role model that she knows about. The point is that young people – especially girls – see people with their skin color at important events and feel: “We can do that despite all the obstacles!” That was the case with Joe Biden’s inauguration. Its Vice President, Kamala Harris, is a woman with roots in the black and Asian communities. And a young black woman recited a poem.
Amanda Gorman received very prestigious awards very early on for her exceptional talent as a poet. It wasn’t easy to get there. In her poem “The Hill We Climb”, which she recited at Biden’s inauguration, she describes herself as a skinny black girl who was descended from slaves and raised by a single mother.
Catholic – baptized as a youth
Born prematurely as one of twins, she suffered from hearing problems in her childhood, so she processed information differently. That led to a language problem, the letter “R” is still a problem today. She has emphasized in various interviews that she does not see this as an obstacle, more as a challenge because it makes her more sensitive to the sound of the words.
What is less known is that Gorman is Catholic. She is a member of the St. Brigid Parish in South Central Los Angeles, where she was baptized, attended communion, and was confirmed as a youth – all in one day after two years of preparation. St. Brigid is proud of her, and her talent was recognized very early on. At the time when she received the “Youth Poet Laureate” award for young literature from Los Angeles at the age of 16, she wrote a poem for her parish which she recited at the end of a mass for the murdered civil rights activist Martin Luther King. The parish sponsored her sociology studies at Harvard.
St. Brigid, founded in 1920, is a traditionally black church that is now increasingly popular with Latinos. Both groups encounter structural racism in everyday life, so it is not for nothing that a prayer to overcome racism in English and Spanish can be found on the parish website.
2037 presidential nomination?
Racism and feminism are important issues for Amanda Gorman and, by the way, also for her sister Gabrielle, whose medium is not the word, but the film. Gabrielle describes herself as a model, actress, writer and director. The twins both have degrees from prestigious universities: Amanda studied sociology at Harvard, and Gabrielle studied film at the University of California in Los Angeles.
Amanda Gorman has already announced in television interviews that January 20, 2037 should be noted. Then she would like to be present again at the inauguration – as Madam President Gorman. She likes to say with a smile in her voice that she wants to run for election when she has reached the age of 35 to run for the office of US President. In her family, however, this is taken seriously. Lastly, Gorman noted that her sister Gabrielle was already watching how she came across in pictures on social media. The politician Hillary Clinton has already promised her support.
So the odds are good for Amanda Gorman. It has made poetry suitable for the masses and serves as a role model for young black people. And by the way, she has also made hairbands – like the one she wore to her inauguration – a much sought-after accessory again.
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