NMAAHC Poetry Slam
Join us Friday, April 24th beginning at 10am as we celebrate National Poetry Month with a Virtual Poetry Slam!
Poets, aspiring poets, families, and artists of all ages are encouraged to participate. The Museum will accept videos of original poetry performances and still images of poetry-inspired creations on three different themes: Resiliency and Hope, Community, and Jazz music.
To participate:
- Follow @NMAAHC on social media.
- Record video of yourself performing a poetry piece or take a photo of your poetic creation based on one of the four designated themes.
- Close your submission by sharing in a tweet or Instagram post with the #NMAAHCPoetrySlam and encourage others to participate. Don’t forget to tag us! @NMAAHC
Resources to Inspire Your Creativity
READ
Langston Hughes: The People's Poet
Langston Hughes was resolute in listening to the stories of the working class, telling those stories in a language they understood, and, in so doing, reflecting back on Harlem the beauty and boundlessness he saw every day.
https://nmaahc.si.edu/blog-post/langston-hughes-peoples-poet
Spreading the Word
In the 1940s, Baldwin demonstrated skill and insight at writing reviews for leading publications, which helped to launch his literary career.
https://nmaahc.si.edu/blog-post/spreading-word
Lessons on Life and Literature
Living abroad helped to shape Baldwin’s personal identity and spawn his literary output.
https://nmaahc.si.edu/blog-post/lessons-life-and-literature
A Choreopoem on Broadway
Poet and playwright Ntozake Shange debuted her groundbreaking work, for colored girls who have considered suicide/when the rainbow is enuf in 1974 using an innovative form she defined as a choreopoem.
https://nmaahc.si.edu/choreopoem-broadway
A New African American Identity: The Harlem Renaissance
The Great Migration drew to Harlem some of the greatest minds and brightest talents of the day, an astonishing array of African American artists and scholars. Between the end of World War I and the mid-1930s, they produced one of the most significant eras of cultural expression in the nation’s history—the Harlem Renaissance. Yet this cultural explosion also occurred in Cleveland, Los Angeles and many cities shaped by the great migration. Alain Locke, a Harvard-educated writer, critic, and teacher who became known as the “dean” of the Harlem Renaissance, described it as a “spiritual coming of age” in which African Americans transformed “social disillusionment to race pride.”
https://nmaahc.si.edu/blog-post/new-african-american-identity-harlem-renaissance
Image of Charlie Parker Saxophone
WATCH
The Fire Next Time
James Baldwin: The Fire Next Time, A Conversation with Steve Schapiro
https://www.ustream.tv/recorded/104729648
Little Man Little Man: A Story of Childhood
Discussion with Karen Garret, LeVar Burton, Allyson Criner Brown, Judith Thurman, and Aisha Karefa-Smart
https://www.ustream.tv/recorded/118758283
Ingenuity Award - Janelle Monae
Smithsonian Ingenuity Award to Janelle Monae in a discussion with Christian McBride
https://www.ustream.tv/recorded/118913619
Furious Flower Panel and Presentation
Panel Discussion: Critical Perspectives Innovating the Archive Presentation
https://www.ustream.tv/recorded/124108109
Furious Flower Innovating The Archive (Continued)
https://www.ustream.tv/recorded/124131646
Furious Flower Interactive Workshop
https://www.ustream.tv/recorded/124109626