Amanda Gorman Honors and Recognition – Amanda S. C. Gorman was born on March 7, 1998, and is an American poet and activist.
She addresses themes of oppression, feminism, race, marginalization, and the African diaspora in her work. Gorman made history as the first National Youth Poet Laureate.
In 2015, she published her poetry book titled “The One for Whom Food Is Not Enough.” Her fame skyrocketed in 2021 when she wrote and delivered her poem “The Hill We Climb” at President Joe Biden’s inauguration. The poem received international acclaim, propelling two of her books to become bestsellers and securing her a professional management contract.
Amanda Gorman was featured in Time magazine’s “100 Next” list in the “Phenoms” category, with a profile written by Lin-Manuel Miranda. That same year, she became the first poet to perform at the Super Bowl, reciting her poem “Chorus of the Captains” at Super Bowl LV.
Despite facing challenges, Amanda Gorman has thrived. She has an auditory processing disorder and is hypersensitive to sound.
Additionally, she had a speech impediment during her childhood. Amanda Gorman underwent speech therapy and viewed her speech impediment as a strength, leading her to excel in reading and writing. She drew inspiration from the Marianne Deborah Williamson quote, “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate, our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.”
Gorman used songs, like “Aaron Burr, Sir” from Hamilton, as speech therapy exercises to overcome her speech impediment.
Gorman attended New Roads, a private school in Santa Monica, from kindergarten to 12th grade. She received a college scholarship from the Milken Family Foundation during her senior year.
Gorman pursued sociology at Harvard College and graduated cum laude in 2020 as a member of Phi Beta Kappa. She also spent a semester studying in Madrid, Spain, supported by IES Abroad in 2019.
Gorman’s writing journey took shape when she discovered the works of Toni Morrison in middle school, realizing that stories could feature people who looked like her. In high school, she delved into the poetry of black women such as Audre Lorde and Phillis Wheatley, using her own poems to address social justice issues and intersectional feminism.
Gorman sees a connection between fashion and poetry, drawing inspiration from icons like Maya Angelou, the Duchess of Sussex, and Michelle Obama. She believes that fashion brings a visual aesthetic to language, allowing her clothing choices to reflect her identity as a poet.
As a Black Catholic, Amanda Gorman is a member of St. Brigid Catholic Church, a Black Catholic parish in her hometown of Los Angeles. Following President Biden’s inauguration, she expressed her admiration for James Corden during an appearance on The Late Late Show, calling him her favorite human being.
Michael Cirelli, the executive director of Urban Word NYC, describes Gorman as a “powerhouse” and humorously notes that her biography needs frequent updates due to her continuous achievements. In 2014, it was reported that Gorman aspired to be a human rights advocate.
Amanda Gorman Honors and Recognition
Below are some of the honors Amanda Gorman has received so far in her career;
2014 – Chosen as inaugural youth poet laureate of Los Angeles
2017 – Chosen as National Youth Poet Laureate
2017 – Ozy Genius Award
2018 – Named one of Glamour magazine’s College Women of the Year
2019 – Named on The Root’s “Young Futurists” list
2021 – Selected to read at the inauguration of Joe Biden, becoming the youngest poet ever to read at a US presidential inauguration
2021 – Highlighted by Time magazine in their Time100 Next list, under the category of “Phenoms”
2021 – Winner Goodreads Choice Awards – Best Poetry for The Hill We Climb
2022 – A new species of alga in central New York was named Gormaniella terricola
2022 – Winner Goodreads Choice Awards – Best Poetry for Call Us What We Carry
2023 – Nominated for Best Spoken Word Poetry Album at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards for Call Us What We Carry.
Source: www.ghgossip.com
