Poetry At Humanities Amped - A Community Legacy

In pursuit of deepening our roots in youth poetry, for the last two years, Humanities Amped has brought dynamic poetry programming to Tara High’s campus. Designed to amplify youth voices and affirm their identities as writers, this programming has included campus-wide writing initiatives, open mics, a poetry club, and poetry team. Last year, the Amped Poetry Team had the highest number of representatives at the EBRPSS district-wide poetry competition. This year, our poetry team members were selected from a pool of over 300 submitted poems written in response to school-wide prompts. The twelve students selected for the team participated in intensive writing and practice sessions for several weeks leading up to the competition. For their group poem “To the Teenagers,” Amped youth poets O’Neethia Walker, Aja Cummings, and Bralinn Edwards took home second place, receiving a $125 cash prize. Amped poets Yulieth Vilma Enamorado, Oriel Young, and Jermia Wyble also performed poems that were enthusiastically received.

​Humanities Amped’s poetry programming contributes powerfully to youth confidence, expression, and literacy. One Amped student shared that before her experiences with Amped, “I never thought that I would be the kind of person to write poems.” Following her experience, she learned about herself that “I could actually write poems.” For students, confidence in their identities as writers is a key contributing factor to literacy and other success in and out of school.

The 2024 Humanities Amped Tara High Poetry Team
Oriel, O'Neethia, Jermia, Yulie, Gisele, Aja, Kaden, Skylar, Bralinn, Monserrat (not pictured), with sponsors Ms. LaCour and Mr. Kalivyn

The members of the poetry team received targeted writing support and mentorship from program lead, local Baton Rouge poet Kalivyn Marquix. As an alum of Forward Arts, which was incorporated into Humanities Amped in 2019, Kalivyn (whom the students lovingly call Mr. Kalivyn) strategically works to continue the legacy of the youth writing community that sustained and developed them during their own high school years. Kalivyn keenly recognizes the important role this community played for them as a Black, Queer, Southern, working class young writer, sharing that “It became a place to document my growth, it was a community of people, of poets who I could dream with, grieve with, imagine with. They were the ones who held this dream for me.”

Like many of our current Amped poets, Mr. Kalivyn came into poetry through programming that centered on community, mentorship, and performances of possibility. Performances of possibility are opportunities for young people to demonstrate to themselves and to others how much they are capable of when given adequate trust and support. Youth spoken word is a space filled with performances of possibility. For Kalivyn, observing their peers perform their own writing in their own voices led from “How are they able to do this so confidently?” to “Oh wow, this is something that I can do, too.” As a member of the Baton Rouge Youth Slam Team, Mr. Kalivyn competed at Brave New Voices in 2017, where the team became the first from the deep South to be crowned International Youth Slam Champions. Bringing home this victory after the extremely challenging Baton Rouge summer of 2016 and on the anniversary of beloved Amped alum and fellow poet Kaiya Smith’s passing, was particularly meaningful for Mr. Kalivyn and their teammates.

Inside Humanities Amped, Kalivyn is able to continue to nurture this community. Mr. Kalivyn considers, “What does it mean for me to create that space that I was given? It is a lineage, it is a tradition passed down. I want to be mindful of stepping into that role even through disruption, like the pandemic and our moves between schools. We can’t lose those traditions. We have too much talent, creativity, and possibility to give up.”

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As we look toward the summer and next school year, we have big plans to continue building a legacy of youth poetry at Tara High. Deepening these roots will only be possible with the direct support of our beloved community. If you would like to join this legacy of amplifying youth voices in Baton Rouge, we invite you to make a donation today at the link below.

DONATE

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To the Teenagers (2024)
by O’Neethia Walker, Aja Cummings, and Bralinn EdwardsTo the teenagers who never get appreciated 
To the teenagers who stay up late for homework
To the teenagers who help others in need
TO THE TEENAGERS 
To the ones who sit alone
To the ones who don't blend in
To the ones who don't start drama 
THIS POEM IS FOR YOU
For those who feel as if there is no point, 
          whether it be you’ve tried and gotten nowhere, 
          or maybe it is too difficult to continue 
Be patient.

You may feel unseen 
          like they don’t hear you
          like they don’t listen 
          like why should I care 

The hardest part about speaking to those you trust is wondering if they may understand where you're coming from

For those who feel alone because they have no one to relate to

To those who look for comfort in the important figures in their lives just to be told their struggle is no struggle at all 

It hurts to not be heard and it seems like it doesn’t phase anyone

For those who wish for a listening ear instead of a mouth that demands and directs

Adults 
          Parents
          Teachers
          Deans
always want us to be better and do better 
but how could we? 

When we live in a world that teenagers have depression and anxiety
It makes me think

LKE am i just a dumb teenager to you?
like does it go in one ear and out the other?
Like did you shut me out?

Why aren’t you willing to learn how to understand us?

Because sometimes we may feel like a dying flame in a world so cold 
Because sometimes we search for answers to what some may see as meaningless questions
Because sometimes we are just desperate for what is supposed to be love or affection

BECAUSE SOMETIMES WE JUST WANT TO BE HEARD

To the teenagers who always hear 
         "It’s because you always on that phone”
          but that's how you get out of this reality

To the teenagers who
          Always letting the cold air out
          Running in and out the house
          78

To the teenagers
          "Who forget to take the chicken out”
          As if when you complete a task another appears

To the teenagers
          Who NEVERRRRR
          have McDonald’s Money

To the teenagers who feel as if the world is falling on you
As if you have to be the greatest 
I feel that deep pain for never being good enough 

Because 
I am one of you

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What's New at Humanities Amped

Scotland Saturdays, a concert series project of our Executive Director Dexter Jackson was featured in 225 Magazine.