‘Poetry Out Loud’ event showcases young New Mexican poets
By Amari Saxton
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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KOAT) — This weekend, students across New Mexico had the opportunity to celebrate American history and culture through poetry at the 21st anniversary of the Poetry Out Loud event.
The event consisted of eleven high school students who were state finalists and represented their schools, which ranged across the state.
The event showcased three rounds from the eleven finalists of spoken word poetry as well as a 15-minute performance from a mariachi band.
The students showcased poems from several famous artists, ranging from Langston Hughes to Carl Sandburg and Walt Whitman. In light of International Women’s Day, some students chose poems that contained powerful messages about women’s rights.
“I wanted to include something that I connected with as a woman”, runner-up Noelle Humphreys said. “I love Georgia Douglas Johnson, so I chose ‘The Heart of a Woman’ because it really moved me.”
The winner of the event, Hadas Frish, received $200 as well as a $500 stipend for the purchase of poetry material. In addition to the cash prize, the winner also received an all-expense-paid trip to represent New Mexico at the Poetry Out Loud National Finals in Washington, D.C., in April.
“I think the topic that I chose and the way that I delivered it helped me,” Hadas said. “Not a lot of people talk about women’s suffrage in their poems, and I think that’s something that stood out to the judges.”
Hadas said she is also excited to head to Washington, D.C., to represent New Mexico in the state finals.
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