“There is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it.”
“Poetry is the lens we use to interrogate the history we stand on and the future we stand for.”
“When day comes, we step out of the shade, aflame and unafraid.”
“For there is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it.”
“We lift our gazes not to what stands between us, but what stands before us.”
“The new dawn blooms as we free it, for there is always light.”
“Words matter. Words can inspire. Words can unite.”
“History has its eyes on us.”
“We did not feel prepared to be the heirs of such a terrifying hour, but within it, we found the power.”
“The only approval you need is your own.”
“We are striving to forge a union with purpose.”
“We are not broken, we are unfinished.”
“Poetry has never been the language of barriers; it’s always been the language of bridges.”
“We’ve seen a force that would shatter our nation rather than share it.”
“Even as we grieved, we grew. Even as we hurt, we hoped.”
“If we merge mercy with might, and might with right, then love becomes our legacy.”
“Victory won’t lie in the blade but in all the bridges we’ve made.”
“We will rebuild, reconcile, and recover.”
“Being American is more than a pride we inherit—it’s the past we step into and how we repair it.”
“Scripture tells us to envision that everyone shall sit under their own vine and fig tree, and no one shall make them afraid.”
“Let the globe, if nothing else, say this is true: That even as we grieved, we grew.”
“We lay down our arms so we can reach out our arms to one another.”
“It’s the past we step into and how we repair it.”
“For while we have our eyes on the future, history has its eyes on us.”
“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.”
“The norms and notions of what ‘just is’ isn’t always justice.”
“Our people diverse and beautiful will emerge, battered and beautiful.”
“Our democracy will never be permanently defeated.”
“We will rise from the gold-limbed hills of the west.”
“If we’re to live up to our own time, then victory won’t lie in the blade but in all the bridges we’ve made.”
“We are the successors of a country and a time where a skinny Black girl descended from slaves can dream of becoming president.”
“To compose a country committed to all cultures, colors, characters, and conditions of man.”
“Being American is more than a pride we inherit.”
“For a while, we felt our arms would never be light again.”
“We are a country that is bruised but whole.”
“Let the story be the cure, and not the wound.”
“For what it’s worth: never underestimate the power of a girl with a book.”
“Change is made of choice and challenge.”
“The world is waiting for your words, so don’t wait to write them.”
“Hope isn’t something we ask of others; it is something we must ask of ourselves.”
“Poetry is for everyone, and at its core, it’s all about connection.”
“We have the right to be bold and the duty to be fearless.”
“Our words are bridges across divides.”
“Unity doesn’t mean uniformity. We must find strength in our differences.”
“We are the light that remains in the darkest of times.”
“Even the darkest clouds can’t put out the light of a single flame.”
“The pen is mightier than the sword because it writes our collective story.”
“A poet’s role is to tell the truth, even when it’s hard to hear.”
“You are your ancestors’ wildest dreams.”