This year’s Love Out Loud poetry performance in Pittsburgh was driven by a theme of self-love. This year, maybe more than ever, it was important for scholars to express the things that they love about themselves. With so much happening in schools, and in the communities that our scholars live, taking a moment to focus on positivity helped to brighten scholars’ spirits.
It is often difficult for scholars to vocalize what makes them special, what they believe are their good qualities. They must see positive images of those who look like them, and be able to see those positive qualities in themselves. From being an exceptional athlete to appreciating the skin that they are in, our scholars voiced the things that made them feel special. It was an inspiring, uplifting evening.
Here is one of the poems shared at Love Out Loud:
Brown
My skin is thicker than rubber,
Stronger than wind,
And reminds me of my life within.
Reminds me of the trauma and drama,
The thick and the thin,
The sad times, the bad times,
The moments of laughter.
I am Faith Murphy,
I am brown and free
And that is who I will always be.
– Faith, 6th grade
We are so appreciative of the mentors, staff, donors, collaborators, and partners that made Love Out Loud 2018 a success!
Talent is everywhere – opportunity isn’t. To be a part of creating better opportunities for our young people, contact Joan Axelson, jaxelson@higherachievement.com and find out all the ways that you can get involved.