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radicalstorytelling · 5 years

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WINNING POEM: Breadlines

In 2018, The Poetry Society’s Young Poets Network partnered with Oxfam and End Hunger UK to run a poetry competition for UK-based writers aged 11-25, in response to the scandal of UK hunger. The UN’s Gallup World Poll had suggested 4 years earlier that an estimated 8.4 million people in the UK lived in households where adults reported insecure access to food in the past year, but under austerity governments food bank usage had continued to rise. At the same time, in England, no one in government was measuring how bad the situation was, although Labour’s Emma Lewell-Buck MP was pressuring for that to change. I felt I had to do something, so the night I found out about the competition - the night before the deadline - I wrote a poem, recited it to camera and sent it off.

Thank God I did! The piece - named Breadlines - won 1st prize in the 16-18 age category. As a result, it was published in a collection titled Poems to End Hunger, made into a film by Carl Shanahan and toured around the UK in an exhibition to raise support for Emma Lewell-Buck’s Bill to measure food insecurity in England. This tour culminated in the Houses of Parliament, where I was invited to perform it for activists and MPs alike at the End Hunger UK National conference!

For me, this was all very exciting. But the more I found out about hunger in the UK through this, the less excited I got and the more angry. Food poverty should not exist in a country as wealthy as the UK is. I wanted to do more, so I emailed End Hunger UK. They put me in contact with #DarwenGetsHangry, a youth-led campaign addressing food poverty in Lancashire, who I continue to write for and with today. I should also mention that in February 2019, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) confirmed that it was planning to include household food insecurity measurement questions in its annual Food and Resources Survey, starting in April 2019.

Breadlines

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Give us this day our daily bread

So said the underfed, Give us it because the baby’s half-dead Because when Susie’s heading to the bank She doesn’t mean NatWest – There wouldn’t be any point anyway.

They have cropped the Lord’s Prayer. They want one thing from the Divine: Daily bread, hence why When we talk about poverty We call it the breadline Where £1.85 Means you’re buying some red wine And the Daily Mail’s headlines Invade minds like head lice.

And on the corner near Home Bargains Aidan sits on the paves. He’ll gladly accept your coppers But is desperate for change, Tin cans and plastic bags lovingly arranged.

He tells me: “This is a food fight. This is the Hunger Games.”

And little Benny’s tummy is rumbling He calls out to eat something And Mummy’s coming But in her hands she’s carrying nothing And he’s crying again, Off he goes, But little does he know His mum hasn’t eaten for three days in a row.

Sometimes I hope that I’m seeing Fake news on the television Because what I’m seeing is so shocking That I want it to be fiction, Then I hear complaints From my mates When a packet of grapes Is out of their price ranges.

And I don’t mean to make this an issue of religion But with prices like high rises These fruits remain forbidden.

I’m not a cynic But it is ridiculous when the 1% Are still fattened up like chickens. How is this still a problem in Britain? How here do eight million Still struggle to get food into the kitchen And why are those worst affected Including one in five children?

Yet the issues are still hidden. These stories remain unwritten And nobody’s listening.

But the thing with Pandora’s box Is that there’s still hope within it.

And that hope is from the times I’ve seen people supporting their neighbours, Even those normally cautious with their wages, And yet when I see people collecting donations It’s not the suits that are paying up, It’s the teenagers. Unreported acts of bravery Every day by the nameless. So forget God Because I reckon Five thousand can be fed Without divine intervention.

So give us this day our daily bread

Or at least give us the means Because we’ll manage the rest.

#1stprize #poetry #endhungeruk

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radicalstorytelling · 5 years

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PROJECT: A is for Apple

Writing has always been my chosen strategy for dealing with exam stress. I wrote this A-Z poem on the education system after seeing the declining mental health of my friends during GCSEs. To this day I still see it as my best piece.

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#mentalhealth #aisforapple #poetry

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radicalstorytelling · 5 years

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PROJECT: Kidz Theez Dayz!

Kidz Theez Dayz is an hour-long spoken word/theatre piece exploring the place of Generation Z in the current political landscape. Written and performed by UK Youth Slam Champion Matt Sowerby, the show deals with everything from mental health to climate change, friendships, first loves and education.

Does that sound interesting enough? I hope so. I cannot say enough how much work I have put into this project, or how fun it has been! The whole process of planning, writing, editing, revising, designing sound, rehearsing and promoting has, and continues to be, a truly valuable learning curve and one which has allowed me to produce something I’m actually very proud of.

So far, I have performed the show twice; once at Tidelines Literature Festival and once at Greenbelt Festival. When will I next perform it? We’ll see... Currently the show is on hiatus while I settle into university. I’ve got a few ideas that I’m toying around with at the moment, so rest assured Greenbelt will not have been my final performance. At the very least I’ll be taking it up to the Fringe Festival in 2020. Right now, if you are interested in watching it, it’s probably best to follow me on the Kidz Theez Dayz twitter account where I’ll be posting updates soon!

#kidztheezdayz #spokenword #show

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radicalstorytelling · 5 years

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COMMISSON: Article on Poetry and Climate Change for the Young Poets Network

In September 2019, the Poetry Society commissioned a handful of young poets who were involved with climate activism to each to write an article on the role of poetry in addressing climate change. The articles were published on the Society’s ‘Young Poets Network’ to mark the Global Climate Strike on the 20th September. Read my article here!

#portfolio #climatechange #poetrysociety

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radicalstorytelling · 5 years

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COMMISSON: Protest Poem for #DarwenGetsHangry

In the UK - a reportedly ‘developed’ country - there are 14 million people in the category of ‘food insecure’. In fact, the UK has the 2nd highest level of child food insecurity in Europe. #DarwenGetsHangry is a campaign to end UK food poverty, led by a group of young people with first-hand experience of it. You may have seen them on ITV News recently - they’re doing very well! My brief was to sit down with some of the campaigners to chat about how food poverty has effected them and then write a spoken word piece, from their perspective, in response. The piece will be performed for the first time in October at the launch of End Hunger UK’s latest campaign.

This project has been both a challenge and a huge privilege. The sensitive nature of the stories I was helping communicate required me to work closely with the Darwen Gets Hangry campaigners, who blew me away with their bravery and trust. I feel real hope that soon the government will be forced to face up to the issue of UK food poverty, and it was an honour to feature in the history these extraordinary young people are making.

fact:

food insecurity affects 14 million people

in this country

that means:

on your street,

in your village,

in your community,

there are people left to go hungry

however,

they’re saying these days that no one listens to figures

so to paint you the bigger picture

14 million includes those dipping into bins for dinner

come home stinking with fish and chips looking chipper

kids missing meals looking thinner but insisting different

and men in suits in food banks licking juice from their fingers

14 million includes the parents

who increasingly are too hungry to sleep.

Spend their days fatigued feeling physically weak

numbing their stomachs with water. At least that’s free

and at least their suffering allows their children to eat

and the girl. the young carer

who was never taught to cook or prepare food

and it’s fine - her brothers can get free meals at school

so maybe they’ll make do

till school stops. for summer

and after that they can ration

wrap up the last bits of lunchtime’s sandwiches for supper

six sunny weeks

of hunger

and her friend balancing two jobs alongside full-time education

but between empty kitchen days and slipping grades

there’s no kip-taking or relaxation

no vacations or playstations

she’s running on fear of running out of basics

running off the tears and covering her face

it’s amazing what she can do. and what she’s done

supporting her siblings and mum

since year 11 when she came undone

these are true stories.

and they’re not easy to hear

but the reason we’re telling them is because

they say that these days no one listens to facts

see they’re immune to them like they’ve had a vaccine

so to combat that we are taking a stand against catastrophe

getting hangry

we, the kids who dragged ourselves through dark days and empty stomachs

who made sure to get every last grain of rice

who learned the hard way to appreciate what we had

and are fighting to cause change so no one else has to

because the fastest way to change society is to change the way people think

and these stories hold power

if we’re going to stop poverty we’re going to have to be loud

and so if there’s a story inside of you waiting to come out

listen to that sound

come find us. get hangry. and speak out.

#portfolio #commission darwengetshangry

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radicalstorytelling · 5 years

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BLOG POST: A Summer of Poetry

I have been a poet (whatever that means) for the past 2 years. However, I have also been an A-Level student, which means that finding time to write has sometimes required more creativity than doing the actual writing. That all charged at 3.20pm on the 13th of June when I finished my final exam and entered into the longest summer of my life. I was determined not to waste a second of it. That was 5 weeks ago. If you're a concerned friend wondering why you haven't seen me in a while, here is what I've been up to.

1. Writing Spoken Word for #DarwenGetsHangry

#DarwenGetsHangry is a campaign to end UK food poverty, led by a group of young people. You may have seen them on ITV News recently - they're doing very well! My brief was to sit down with some of the campaigners to chat about how food poverty has effected them and then write a spoken word piece, from their perspective, in response. Members of the campaign will perform the piece at the End Hunger UK national conference in October and then will create a poetry-video based upon the piece to use as a tool for campaigning and recruitment.

I'll be adding the #DarwenGetsHangry piece to my digital portfolio as soon as I have the go-ahead from the campaigners to do so!

2. Judging an environment-themed youth poetry competition From one group of youth campaigners to another!

Although school has finished, the Cumbria branch of the School Strikes 4 Climate Movement continues, proving once and for all that we are, in fact, not just lazy skivers... (as the random elderly folk who encounter our protests seem to LOVE informing me). Excitingly, it's making a difference as well! Already this year South Lakeland District Council have declared a climate emergency as a direct response to our February meeting, local media are providing regular coverage, and only last week Lib Dem Cllr Dyan Jones contacted us to arrange a meeting.

Unsurprisingly, poetry has cemented itself at the core of the movement, proving Shelley's assertion that 'poets are the unacknowledged legislators of the world'. Inspired in part by the new poet laureate's pledge to use poetry to combat climate change, the organisers at UKSCN Cumbria decided to launch a competition for all school-aged young people throughout Cumbria, with subcategories for each Key Stage. Originally, my role was just supposed to be curating a judging panel, although this somehow has evolved to me being on the panel myself, promoting at it protests, and even appearing on BBC Radio Cumbria!

Overall, the competition has received 365 entries, which isn't bad for a contest arranged by a handful of teenagers without a budget! Winning entries are still to be announced, as the other judges and I are taking our time reading through our allotted poems. With so many negative messages about the future circulating, it's good to know that we can still find hope in the next generation. In the same vein but not completely related - if you do fancy listening to some poetry about climate change, one of mine received international attention earlier this month when it ended up on Extinction Rebellion's digital newsletter! (what witchcraft...) I'm about halfway down, dressed as a penguin.

3. Helping Organise a Literature Festival

Tidelines Literature Festival is a brand new family-orientated literature festival taking place in Grange over Sands on the 17th and 18th of August, for free. They've got special guests like Kate fox, Katie Hale and Tony Vino, as well as a storm slam, crafts, and open mic, a living library and plenty more. Originally I was only supposed to be hosting the poetry open mic (are we sensing a theme here?) but talking to the organisers, I confess, I may have gotten excited and volunteered to be the volunteer liason, as well as to put together a team of young poets-in-residence, help out with social media, help with promotion and perform an hour long show (more on that later) as well. Not that I'm complaining. Helping out with this festival has been more fun than I can say, and it hasn't even happened yet! For more information please do check out the Tidelines eventsbrite page.

4. Writing a full length show!

By far my most ambitious project this summer has been writing my first full-length show 'Kidz Theez Dayz'. This has been A LOT of work, and I've loved every minute of it (except cutting it down at the end, damn time constrictions!). 'Kidz Theez Dayz' is a (hopefully) powerful and thought-provoking spoken word/theatre piece about what it means to be a political big-mouth teenager in the 21st century. The show deals with everything from school life, the environment, first loves, mental health, powerful friendships and parental pressure, and is very firmly routed in our current political landscape. Does that sound interesting enough? I hope so. The whole process of planning, writing, editing, revising, designing sound, rehearsing and promoting has, and continues to be, a truly valuable learning curve and one which has allowed me to produce something I'm actually very proud of.

So far, I have 2 performances lined up, one at Tidelines Literature Festival in Grange, Lancashire on the 17th of August, followed the weekend afterwards by Greenbelt Festival in Boughton House, Northamptonshire. If you are interested in coming along but can't make either of those dates, I'll be announcing further performances on twitter, and after that... Fringe 2020?

5. Other things...

Upon reflection, cramming every poetry-related event, competition or project that I've been a part of so far this summer into this one blog post could be a stretch, so please forgive me for cramming a few into this one section.

One of the greatest privileges I have is being able to go into schools and teach poetry and creative writing, as I did at a primary school in Morecambe last week as part of their 'Wonderfest'. I've also been working with another artist to create a 10-minute piece of street theatre around climate change, set post-apocalypse, that will debut at the Torchlight Carnival in September. Another friend has recruited me to help organise a showcase of talented young artists, in aid of Ovarian Cancer, which we are busy planning and which I will be hosting. I've also finally had the time to start this blog! Hello, by the way.

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