“What I really aspire to do in the poem is to be able to use my words to envision a way in which our country can still come together and can still heal,” Gorman told The New York Times. Her powerful words, glowing presence and even her vibrant sartorial choices made Gorman the true star of the momentous occasion. Get to know the history-making, majestic wordsmith.
Who is Amanda Gorman?
Gorman is a writer, speaker and the first-ever National Youth Poet Laureate.
When did Amanda Gorman become the National Youth Poet Laureate?
Gorman explained on The Kelly Clarkson Show that when she was a child, she began writing as a means to express herself through the written word because she of her speech impediment. In high school, she applied to become a youth poet laureate for Los Angeles. She won and became Los Angeles Youth Poet Laureate, then promoted to Youth Poet Laureate of the West. While studying sociology at Harvard University, Gorman applied to become the first-ever National Youth Poet Laureate under a program spearheaded by then-First Lady Michelle Obama. “The way I describe it is like being mayor, senator, then President of Youth Poet Laureate,” she said.
Where is Amanda Gorman from?
Gorman grew up in Los Angeles, raised by her mother, Joan Wicks. She has a twin sister who is an activist.
How old is Amanda Gorman?
Born March 7, 1998, Gorman turns 23 this year.
Amanda Gorman performed a poem at Joe Biden’s inauguration
Gorman told The Wall Street Journalthat she wrote her poem a few lines at a time, and that some of her poem came to her after watching the riots and a coup attempt at the Capitol Jan. 6, 2021. She explained, “I took it as a reminder that we need tone and feeling and spirit to help us make sense of things.” She researched other speakers and orators from times of great division and strife, including Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchill and Martin Luther King Jr.in order to prepare for her major moment. She told The New York Timesthat she had no choice but to write her poem in bits and pieces simply due to her overwhelm at the opportunity. “I had this huge thing, probably one of the most important things I’ll ever do in my career,” she said.“It was like, if I try to climb this mountain all at once, I’m just going to pass out.” Gorman recited “The Hill We Climb” at the presidential inauguration. The full text of her poem is below:
Joe Biden had nothing to do with the poem
“They did not want to put up guardrails for me at all,” Gorman told The New York Times. “The theme for the inauguration in its entirety is ‘America United,’ so when I heard that was their vision, that made it very easy for me to say, great, that’s also what I wanted to write about in my poem, about America united, about a new chapter in our country.” Like Biden in his inaugural address, Gorman did not wish to shy away from the trauma, both recent (the Capitol riots and coup attempt) and systemic and long-term (racism, classism, poverty). “We have to confront these realities if we’re going to move forward, so that’s also an important touchstone of the poem. There is space for grief and horror and hope and unity, and I also hope that there is a breath for joy in the poem," she said, “because I do think we have a lot to celebrate at this inauguration.”
Amanda Gorman’s speech impediment pushed her to pursue writing
Gorman had trouble pronouncing the letter “R” as a child, leading her to turn to writing as a form of self-expression partially out of necessity. However, she wanted to use her actual voice, too. “Once I arrived at the point in my life in high school, where I said, ‘you know what? Writing my poems on the page isn’t enough for me. I have to give them breath, and life, I have to perform them as I am.’ That was the moment that I was able to grow past my speech impediment,” she told CBS This Morning. She turned to music for help. “My favorite thing to practice was the song ‘Aaron Burr, Sir’ from Hamilton because it is jam-packed with Rs,” she said. “And I said, ‘If I can keep up with Leslie in this track, then I am on my way to being able to say this R in a poem.’” It paid off in a big way, as anyone watching the inauguration ceremony can see. “When I am on stage, I feel electric,” she gushed. “I feel like I could breathe fire…like I am summoning the energy not only of myself but of my ancestors.”
Has Amanda Gorman written any books?
Gorman has written three books to date:
The One for Whom Food Is Not Enough, a collection of poetry published in 2015The Hill We Climb: Poems, to be released Sept. 21, 2021Change Sings: A Children’s Anthem, to be released Sept. 21, 2021
And she wants to be president
Gorman told The New York Timesthat she has plans to step into Biden’s shoes someday. “This is a long, long, faraway goal, but 2036 I am running for office to be president of the United States,” she said. “So you can put that in your iCloud calendar.” She has one particularly powerful endorsement for the role already: Next, watch Joe Biden’s full inaugural address.
