The following poems explore the themes of social justice, identity, and human rights and are appropriate for young people.
“Praise Song for the Day” by Elizabeth Alexander
Each day we go about our business…
“Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou
You may write me down in history…
“A Small Needful Fact” by Ross Gay
Is that Eric Garner worked…
“In This Place (An American Lyric)” by Amanda Gorman
There’s a poem in this place...
“Everyday We Get More Illegal” by Juan Felipe Herrera
Yet the peach tree…
“I, Too” by Langston Hughes
I, too, sing America...
“Let America Be America Again” by Langston Hughes
Let American be America again…
“For Trayvon Martin” by Reuben Jackson
Instead of sleeping…
“The New Colossus” by Emma Lazarus
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame…
“Before I Was a Gazan” by Naomi Shihab Nye
I was a boy…
“Gate A-4” by Naomi Shihab Nye
Wandering around the Albuquerque Airport Terminal…
“from Citizen, VI [On the train the woman standing]” by Claudia Rankine
On the train the woman standing makes you understand…
“Black Laws” by Roger Reeves
Fuss, fight, and cutting the huckley-buck—Dear Malindy…
“Carrying Our Words” by Ofelia Zepeda
We travel carrying our words...
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