This is LaJenne’ of Digital Youth Network’s All Access Group covering the Brave New Voices Slam Poetry Festival.  I noticed something on day two of the festival that I believed should receive its recognition. There was a town hall meeting with the different teams in attendance. This meeting offered more than the slam poetry and cipher sessions that I have been seeing on almost every corner of downtown Chicago. The topic was “Valuing Life in the Community”. This gathering ensured that the poets give recognition to their past and inquired as to how they plan to change the future through their art.

Being there was simply beautiful and inspiring. To see all of these young people completely cognizant of what plagues our different communities and hearing their intentions to invoke change in not only in their community, but even furthermore so their intentions to create change throughout the world, was astonishing. These gifted poets find that through their talent that, yes, they can make a change, but the beauty of it is that they find that it is THEIR RESPONSIBILITY to do so. They deem it their responsibility!

The participants of this festival are spoken word artists from ages thirteen to nineteen, and at that age they have already claimed responsibility, I cannot stress this fact enough. They claim the challenging responsibility to restore communities and the misled mindsets of their peers and even strangers. And as a result of their declaration they have already STARTED to inflict change: they speak truth to power on a daily basis, they tell stories of life from ALL aspects, they enlighten people and help them to understand. There are adults in positions of power that don’t do half of what these young poets do on the daily! These spoken word artists are powerful beyond belief and that definitely should receive its due regard. Whoever deemed my generation as lost has never seen one of the participants speak their piece/peace at Brave New Voices Slam Poetry Festival.

Videos from the 12th annual Brave New Voices International Youth Poetry Slam Festival.  ”Half Pint Poets” winners of the first annual Elementary School Slam!