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Amanda Gorman is only 22, but she has already made history.
Wednesday, Gorman became the youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history, performing an original poem titled “The Hill We Climb” at the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden. She continued a tradition that has included such celebrated poets as Robert Frost and Maya Angelou.
In the roughly five-minute reading of her poem, Gorman called for healing and unity, alluding to the pro-Trump rally two weeks ago that turned into a violent storming of the U.S. Capitol.
“We’ve seen a force that would shatter our nation rather than share it / Would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy / And this effort very nearly succeeded / But while democracy can be periodically delayed / It can never be permanently defeated,” she read.
She celebrated the beauty of the country’s diversity and called on Americans to rise to the occasion and leave their country better than they found it.
“We, the successors of a country and a time where a skinny Black girl descended from slaves and raised by a single mother / Can dream of becoming president, only to be reciting for one,” she said.
Gorman concluded: “For there is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it.”
Gorman told The Associated Press she was not given specific instructions on what to write for Wednesday’s inauguration, but she was encouraged to emphasize unity and hope over “denigrating anyone” or declaring “ding, dong, the witch is dead” over the departure of President Donald Trump.
Gorman said she was given five minutes to read. Prior to what she called “the Confederate insurrection” on Jan. 6, she had written only about three and a half minutes’ worth, she told AP.
“That day gave me a second wave of energy to finish the poem,” Gorman said, adding that she would not refer directly to Jan. 6 but would “touch” upon it. She said the Capitol mob did not upend the poem she had been working on because it didn’t surprise her.
“The poem isn’t blind,” she said. “It isn’t turning your back to the evidence of discord and division.”
Just hours after Gorman’s electric reading, Penguin Young Readers announced it would publish a special hardcover edition of the poem to be released this spring.
Wednesday, Gorman wore a red satin headband and red bedazzled mask with a yellow Prada coat. She has worked with Prada: In 2019, she travelled to Slovenia as a correspondent to learn more about recycled materials for the fashion company’s sustainability efforts
Gayle King reported for CBS News that her earrings were a gift from Oprah Winfrey and the caged bird ring she wore was a tribute to Angelou.
Gorman told AP she was contacted by the Biden inaugural committee in late December and said incoming first lady Jill Biden recommended her. – ustoday.com
Online Reporter