Listening to Sophia Thakur speak for ALA’s Virtual Conference was an inspirational event for me, despite the woodchipper running outside my window here at home.
Sophia Thakur is a performance poet from the United Kingdom. She’s got a lovely voice and a beautiful accent, and much of this session was her performing her poetry, some even with musical accompaniment.
But she was especially inspiring for this youth services librarian listener as she talked about giving young people a voice through writing and reflecting the experiences of young people. The whole talk was poetic and lovely. I’ll list some beautiful quotes I was able to jot down:
Libraries are sacred places. After fasting, it’s a full plate.
They are tools for escape.
They remind us the world is bigger than our own.
The escape she found at the library enriched her reality.
Books deposit the option to re-exist.
Libraries are big maternity wards.
She holds mirrors up for people with her poetry.
Quotes are like holding hands to keep us together.
Poetry in school is taught as a science, but poetry is in everything.
Writing is easy. Living is the hard part.
She wants you to read her poems and see yourself.
Literacy is this profound tool to explore ourselves.