Amanda Gorman, exceptional, I mean WOW! Amanda made history on January 20, 2021, when she recited her poem “The Hill We Climb” at the 59th presidential inauguration. As a poet, she is the youngest person to recite her poem at an inauguration.
Amanda Gorman was born on March 7, 1998, in Los Angeles, California. Her mother, Joan Wicks, was a teacher and raised Amanda and 2 other children, Amanda’s siblings, of which one is a twin to Amanda.
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According to Amanda, she did not watch much TV growing up and felt she was a “weird child” compared to other children. She was born with a speech impediment and had an auditory processing disorder. Joan, Amanda’s mom, encouraged her to read and write of which Amanda says she enjoyed.
Inaugural Poet Amanda Gorman-“The Hill We Climb”
Amanda recited her poem “The Hill We Climb” for nearly 6 minutes on national TV. Her speech was impeccable and clear. She overcame her speech impediment and her auditory processing disorder and delivered her heart to the world.
Amanda says she finished her poem after the raid on the white house raid, January 6, 2021. When a poet pours their heart out in a poem, it often takes great emotion to produce words that will change the world. Amanda did just that. She talked of unity throughout the entire poem. You can read the entire poem “The Hill We Climb” through this link.
In her poem “The Hill We Climb,” Amanda Gorman talks of strong unity throughout her words. She speaks eloquently of a world where we all come together. Unity and love are the key to a strong nation pulling together not for perfection but to bridge the divide.
but that doesn’t mean we are
striving to form a union that is perfect
We are striving to forge a union with purpose
She urges all to come together in love and put all differences aside for the good of all. Excerpt form “The Hill We Climb.”
And so we lift our gazes not to what stands between us
but what stands before us
We close the divide because we know, to put our future first,
we must first put our differences aside
We lay down our arms
so we can reach out our arms
to one another
We seek harm to none and harmony for all
Amanda Gorman doesn’t talk of what is wrong in the next few lines of “The Hill We Climb” but instead speaks of how we grew and how far we can go as a nation. And in the final line of this excerpt, she encourages unity and not division.
That even as we grieved, we grew
That even as we hurt, we hoped
That even as we tired, we tried
That we’ll forever be tied together, victorious
Not because we will never again know defeat
but because we will never again sow division
Then she moves on to tell us that we can move forward as a nation. We can unite and bring good to that which was hopeless. We can’t change the past, but as seen in “The Hill We Climb” we can make the future better.
but within it we found the power
to author a new chapter
To offer hope and laughter to ourselves
So while once we asked,
how could we possibly prevail over catastrophe?
Now we assert
How could catastrophe possibly prevail over us?
We will not march back to what was
but move to what shall be
WOW! The words below from “The Hill We Climb” say we can rule in love, mercy, might, and do it the right way. So powerful. So profound.
If we merge mercy with might,
and might with right,
then love becomes our legacy
As Amanda Gorman pulls in all 4 corners of the US, she believes that we can rise above the wrongdoings to produce a strong nation. All in the name of unity. All in the name of “The Hill We Climb.”
Every breath from my bronze-pounded chest,
we will raise this wounded world into a wondrous one
We will rise from the gold-limbed hills of the west,
we will rise from the windswept northeast
where our forefathers first realized revolution
We will rise from the lake-rimmed cities of the midwestern states,
we will rise from the sunbaked south
We will rebuild, reconcile and recover
and every known nook of our nation and
every corner called our country,
All of this change and unity will come to pass only if we are brave enough to see the need for it and brave enough to take action. If we are brave enough to take the words of “The Hill We Climb” to heart.
The new dawn blooms as we free it
For there is always light,
if only we’re brave enough to see it
If only we’re brave enough to be it
We as a nation must set aside our differences for a better cause. No color, race, creed, or gender shall separate a nation as great as the United States Of America.
It has taken the words of a 22-year-old poet in her poem “The Hill We Climb” to bring home the need for love and unity to save our nation. In times such as these, with COVID and color and hatred separating our nation, Amanda speaks of unity, love, and repair.
Amanda Gorman’s accomplishments
Amanda Gorman is an activist. Her focus is on feminism, oppression, race, and marginalization.
At the age of 22, Amanda Gorman’s accomplishments are many. She self-published a book of poetry, “The One For Whom Food Is Not Enough,” was appointed the youth poet laureate of Los Angeles in 2014, and founded “One Pen One Page,” a nonprofit organization in 2017, only to name a few.
Besides reciting her now well-known poem, “The Hill We Climb,” at the inauguration, she has also written another book of her poetry to be released on September 21, 2021. This book is already a #1 seller on amazon thanks to her inaugural reciting of “The Hill We Climb.”
Also, she wrote a book for children to be released on Sept 21, 2021, “Change Sings,” a children’s anthem, encouraging everyone to make a difference.
Amanda Gorman is a poet and one of the best our world has seen. Two years ago, she recited “Earthrise,” a poem of hope that we will all unite together to end climate change. This poem, too, will move you to make a change.
Summary
Is Amanda Gorman another Maya Angelou? Although their poetry is different, they have both had to overcome obstacles to pursue their passion. They are both activists for many great causes to make the world a better place. They both have and had a great desire to help others and change the world.
Both Amanda and Maya are role models for all generations. An example of how anyone can overcome and move forward with work and determination. They have a heart for change and a heart for the American people, and Amanda urges us all to unite and make a difference.
