The 'Black Skinny Dream'

Saturday, 21 December, 2024 

By McCreadie Andias 

It was a historical Wednesday in the world's most powerful land,20th January, 2021.Perhaps a much historical day for a ‘Black skinny dream’. 

As the clocks keept ticking in flashing speed,a ‘Black skinny dream’ sat somewhere on a bouncy couch, waiting in bated breath for a momentious five-and-a-half minute poetry performance and eventually all tables would turn, all the doubters will be defied. A game changing five-and-a-half minute was all it waited for.

But the real thrill was not just about the groundbreaking five-and-a-half minutes, The reality of the thrill is that it was apparent to face the glares of the world's most powerful audience and more teeth shredding, the tightest state- of- the-art security that would probably make a bee think twice before it foolishly sways through the paragon. 

Finally the indispensable moment came. The ‘Black skinny dream’ stepped up on the podium of the national stage at the Capitol hill. It's inevitable to guess how ernomoursly quicker its pulse would beat, but as it faced up and faced a jillion of American flags waving left and right.Its energy ramped up. It's tiny little hands holds the mic on the Hayes desk and the first line was just enough to bring everything to a standstill. 

“When the day comes we ask

Ourselves, 

Where can we find light in

this never-ending shade? 

The loss we carry, 

a sea we must wade.”

What followed comfortably sealed the show in a star-stunned affair with the likes of Jennifer Lopez, Lady Gaga and Garth Brooks who would know a relatively unknown figure, Amanda Gorman would be the mastermind of the buzz at the 2021 presidential inauguration ceremony. 

At 23 year old then, the ‘Black skinny dream’ Amanda Gorman, was the youngest USA inauguration poet an activist, born 7th March, 1998 in Los Angeles, California and raised by a single mother Joan Wicks an English teacher, Her dream was swiftly unfolding. 

Dr Jill Biden USA First Lady knew what she wanted when she selected Gorman for the hornour of performing at the ceremony. 

Winning the honour ofcourse didn't come on a silver platter.Gorman had been in love with poetry since her tender age. At one point of her life as a child she experienced chronic infections and developed auditory processing disorder that developed speech impediment but this even inspired her to become a phenomenal orator. 

Her journey to achieve massive accolades and titles kicked off in 2013 when she became inspired to become a United Nations youth delegate. In 2014 she was chosen as the youth poet laureate of Los Angeles aged just 16 and was actually the first person to receive the unprecedented honour.A year later she published a book ‘The one whom food is not enough’ Which led her to be honoured the first National Youth poet in 2017,the same year she recited her poem ‘The gathering place’ at the UN’s Social Good Summit. 

‘The hill we climb’ Made a tremendous historical twist claiming the biggest week 1 sales of any poetry title ever published. It became the first book to clinch the top spot on the list since 1933.

As if writing the poem wasn't daunting enough, the inauguration fell only two weeks after insurrectionists stormed the US Capitol hill trying to compromise the elections’ result certification. 

Gorman felt compelled to adress this in her poem “We've seen a force that would shatter our nation rather than share it, would destroy our country if it meant destroying democracy(Courtesy from The New York Times) “In my poem, I'm not going to in any way gloss over what we've seen over the past few weeks and dare I say, past few years. 

But 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”. That day alone Gorman garned over 300,000 Twitter followers across the globe. 

Consequently the 2021 Super Bowl thought pop-stars were not again a good match to perform better than Gorman. 

At the Super Bowl extravaganza she paid tribute to three monumental duos Tramaine Davis and educator, Suzie Dolner a nurse and James Martin a veteran who were recognized in their communities as leader during the covid-19 pandemic as confirmed by the New York times

Gorman’s relentless passion for change pushed her to write her first children's book ‘Change sings’ :A children's anthem which claims to empower children to be hopeful and make change. Speaking of hope and ambition, Gorman believes the future of America is brighter in her hands. 

She speaks of her ambitions for US presidency come 2036 at 37 years “ a skinny black girl descended from slaves and raised by a single mother can dream of becoming president ”. 

Her non-profit organisation One pen One page founded in 2016 proofs she wants nothing but the best for her country. The organisation seeks to support youth education and expression with a mission to empower youth to use their voices and help eliminate extortion through education. 

At 27 years now, she follows the footprints of her greatest inspiration Maya Angelou, 1993 Bill Clinton's presidential inauguration poet, Gorman is sure of greater things ahead so is everyone sure that the ‘Black skinny dream’ is sprouting to its heights.

(Story inspired by Amanda Gorman, 2021 Presidential Inauguration Poet.)