Power in Performed Poetry

If Facebook asked me to describe my relationship with Poetry, the best label I could use is “It’s Complicated.” I find the art form frustrating with its rules (or lack thereof) and still can grapple with a poem for hours before understanding what exactly is being said.

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When I started judging Forensics (Speech & Debate) tournaments, though, my mind began to change. Nearly every Saturday, I would watch high schoolers perform poetry, often slam poetry or spoken word poems, and actually enjoy it. I have never been able to read poetry as it “should be” read; instead, I emphasized line breaks, tripped over misplaced punctuation, and often could hear myself stressing rhyme over meaning. Listening to poetry be performed took away these problems and made poetry accessible to me. So, as a break from the traditional “Poem of the Week,” today I will be sharing with you a genre of poetry for the week.

Below are some of my favorite poetry pieces that are currently popular in Forensics Circuits. My hope is that some of you may experience the same transformation I was lucky enough to experience by learning to open your ears, not your eyes, to the power of poetry.

  1. To This Day – Shane Koyczan
  2. Ten Responses to the Phrase “Man Up” – Guante
  3. OCD – Neil Hillborn
  4. Somewhere in America – Belissa Escoloedo, Zariya Allen, & Rhiannon McGavin