On May 6, 2021, East Pennsboro High School hosted a Poetry Slam focusing on microaggressions. Students submitted videos as well as written poetry. Here are some of their words showing that East Pennsboro is a school with NO PLACE FOR HATE.
A New World
by Madison Tate, 2023
Imagine a world where we judge people based on the pureness of their souls,
Not because of their skin,
Not because of their sexuality,
Not because of their beliefs.
We are all human and must look beyond these things.
Just think of how you would feel.
The horrible, never-ending pit in your stomach
For being judged for something you can’t change.
We are so quick to judge based on common stereotypes.
These stereotypes have lived among us,
Roaming the earth since society let them.
Take them away!
Each of us have the power to make the change
To become greater than the hatred,
To become equal,
To become one.
Know that passed what we see on the outside,
There is an actual person with actual feelings.
These people fight for the right
To be seen,
To be heard,
To be free of all discriminations.
Imagine a world where we stood up and fought for a new future,
Eliminating the negative views of others.
Make that world a reality.
Why am I different from him?
by Sarah Wrightstone, 2022
“You’re strong for a girl”
I’ve heard it before
I know I’ll hear it again
But why does being a girl make me seem weak?
Why are boys automatically stronger?
“You’re so bossy”
I’ve heard it before
I know I’ll hear it again
But why am I bossy?
Yet he is a good leader?
“You’re too pretty to be so smart”
I’ve heard it before
I know I’ll hear it again
But why does a girl's beauty define her brain?
Yet a boy can be handsome and smart?
“You’re great at gaming but isn’t that more for boys?”
I’ve heard it before
I know I’ll hear it again
But why aren’t girls supposed to play video games?
Why are they only for boys?
“You’re smart for a girl”
I’ve heard it before
I know I’ll hear it again
But why is me being a smart girl so shocking?
Yet him being a smart boy is not?
“You’re different from most girls”
I’ve heard it before
I know I’ll hear it again
But why are girls so generalized?
Why does society expect us to all be the same?
“I hate being a girl”
I’ve said it before
I know I’ll eventually say it again
But why does society make me want to be a boy?
Yet boys know they would never want to be a girl.
Instead I Say Thank You
by Lexi-Olive Lambert, 2022
'Oh you’re autistic? Well, I still think you’re smart!'
I want to ask what that means
I want to ask what they assumed instead
I want to ask why their opinion of me could change with one word
Instead I say, ‘Thank you’
'At least you don’t look autistic!’
I want to ask what they think autistic people look like
I want to ask why my appearance matters
I should ask why they think that’s a compliment
Instead I say, ‘Thank you’
'Thank God you aren’t weird’
I should ask what they consider weird
I should ask why they think that is okay to say
I should tell them I am weird, but that doesn’t change who I am
Instead I say, ‘Thank you’
'At least you aren’t really autistic'
I should tell them I am, in fact, ‘really autistic’
I should ask why they believe their criteria trumps the DSM-5’s
I need to tell them autism is a spectrum, not a box
Instead I say, ‘Thank you’
'You get really good grades for an autistic person’
I need to say not every autistic person needs help
I need to ask why they believe I cannot be intelligent
I need to tell them that is rude
Instead I say, ‘Thank you’
You can’t be autistic; you’re smart!’
I need to say that is exactly why I tell people
I need to say there is more to autism than a learning disorder
Maybe next time I will say something
Instead I say, ‘Thank you’
You shouldn’t move your hands like that, people will think you’re autistic’
Maybe next time I will tell them it’s called stimming
Maybe next time I will tell them it’s calming and how I relax
Maybe next time I will simply ask why they think autism is a bad thing
Instead I say, ‘Shut up’
What’s that supposed to mean?
by Michele Luo, 2023
That’s not what a lady would do
What’s that supposed to mean?
What would a lady do?
You act different from your race
What’s that supposed to mean?
How does my race act?
You’re pretty for being transgender
What’s that supposed to mean?
Are transgender people ugly?
You’re too young to understand
What’s that supposed to mean?
Does age equal intelligence?
Differences don’t separate us.
They unite us
like steaming cocoa on a piercing night.
It’s a sunset that draws crowds.
We are crowds.
They Think They Know Us
by Sarah Elgarni, 2023
They don’t know what it feels like to be put down.
They think they are making us feel better,
but they are only making us feel worse.
They think they are funny,
But they aren’t.
There is nothing funny about being called a terrorist.
There is nothing funny about having your religion and culture degraded.
They think we don’t see their rude and scared expressions.
Are we really that big of a threat?
These stereotypes are hurting us.
Not only Arabs and Muslims, but people everywhere with different skin colors, ethnicities, and religions.
They don’t know the struggles that our people go through in our mother countries.
They don’t know the number of losses that occur daily.
They tell us to go back to our countries, but where will we go if it’s all ruined?
A lot of us originally were born here, but they don’t know that.
They will always assume without knowing.
Their backhanded compliments are degrading and cruel.
Their words are like a stab to our souls and character.
They will never know what it’s like to be us.
They think they know us, but they never will.
Perception
by Sophia Grasela, 2023
I’ve never liked the way people looked at others
I’ve never liked the way they assume
People will look but they never see
They stare and they never understand
Judgment is something you face from an early age
As early as when your 2-year-old son is a “lady’s man”
Or your 4-year-old daughter is “a wild one” for rolling in the dirt
In the girls’ section and the boys’ section, every store is divided by a wall
A wall covered in prejudiced notions about how you look or what you should wear,
How you should talk, act, walk, think.
I’ve never liked the way people looked at others
I wish for people to truly see each other without their clouded glasses given when they were young
Because I’ve never liked how they assume.
Judging a Book By Its Cover
by Haley Brown, 2023
An unconscious expression of our biases.
Judging a book by its cover
Instead of judging it by its contents.
Pointing out the unnecessary.
Instead of pointing out the outstanding.
A subtle comment of hostility.
Instead of an uplifting comment of love.
A thoughtless joke made to make them laugh.
Instead, it makes her heart sink.
Blowing out others' candles,
Doesn't make yours shine brighter.
Prying Eyes
by Logan Uhrich, 2023
As I venture my way through the schools halls
Something sinister seems to call
Something that cannot speak or talk
I fear those prying eyes as I walk
Prying eyes appear around the bend
Filling me with a sense of dread
I wonder why those eyes seem to judge
Was it something I did? Or do they hold a grudge?
Prying eyes still watch as I wander
Yet their very purpose is something I ponder
An ocean of spies those prying eyes
Undercover they sigh wishing I would comply
Prying eyes cannot speak or talk
They cannot tell me how I should walk
Why should I give them the light of day?
If their only purpose is to make mine gray
Prying eyes they have no power
They only exist to make you cower
In fear, they want to see you weak
Don’t heed their actions, turn the other cheek
Prying eyes just don’t realize
They are countered by those who know on the inside
That the sneers and snarls those eyes can send
Will never affect us in the end
Bias Minds with Broken Thoughts
by Elliot Collins, 2024
“You don’t look gay.”
I don’t look gay?
I'm sorry, does gay have a specific look to it?
Do I have to have bright cherry pink hair,
Plaster my face with too much makeup,
Wear bright neon clothing,
To be gay?
Do I have to look like something I’m not
just to be gay?
No,
I don’t,
I don’t have to abide by your so-called “rules” to be myself,
I don’t have to look a certain way in order to love myself,
I block out your hateful words,
These words still haunt me,
Saying, “You don’t know what you want.”
“You're too young!”
You’re right, I AM too young,
Too young for people to look at me and degrade me for who I am,
Too young to cry,
For the broken souls, and the tattered minds,
Of those who only want to be accepted,
I am too young!,
Too young to fear for my LIFE,
All because I don't love the opposite gender,
All I want,
All I ask for is acceptance,
We are all human,
We all have feelings,
We all have fragile hearts,
So why must you purposely try to tear mine apart?
Why must you look at me and only see a mistake?
Instead of hating me,
Instead of only seeing the world in black and white,
Try to put yourself in my shoes,
To see what I see,
To see what so many others see when the world tries to turn against them,
To see how the world shoots us down,
But we rise up from the ashes,
Stronger than ever before,
Instead of hating us,
Accept us,
You may not like who we are,
You may disagree,
But instead of spreading the black ink of hatred to those around you,
Spread kindness,
Spread love,
Spread happiness,
And teach the young souls of the pure,
So that they too,
Could destroy the ink,
To change the world for the better.
Live In My Shoes
by Makenna Smith, 2023
If you follow me around for just one day,
These are a few things you may hear.
The number of times I’ve been told,
“You need to smile.”
Perhaps, it should be the other way around,
I am not constantly feeling it.
Decided not to wear that style,
I am not always in the mood.
The number of times I’ve been told,
“Oh, that time of the month again.”
Because my attitude is not pristine,
Your words may be a little rough.
But my tenacity is without gender,
That is quite enough for me.
The number of times I’ve been told,
“Why don’t you act like a lady?”
How exactly does a lady act,
Are you more ladylike than I am?
Your gender norms are old-fashioned,
Because I am not a little girl.
Next time you put me in your box,
I will not be as quiet as this time.
I Am Not Just One.
by Amaya Stetler, 2023
In my younger years, I came
across many people in my life.
All from different places.
However, when I was around 8
or maybe 9.
I met a woman who must’ve been
more bored than a barn owl
in the daytime.
You’re quite beautiful dear! Tell me
are you black or white?
The sun was no longer shining.
My surroundings black as a fresh
chalkboard.
Standing before me was this
colossal being that was not man nor creature.
An illuminated ultimatum that
towered over even the tallest
trees.
With a most terrifying voice, it
said to me,
Now choose! The pigment of your
being cannot contain more than one
Filled with the teachings bestowed to me by wise guardians, I replied:
I am not just one. I am both.
See, the color of my skin is
not to be confined into one single
color.
The world consists
of the brightest colors and hues.
Purples, blues, reds, and greens.
So why does that not apply to
me?
You see, what you say might not
be meant to be rude.
I’ll give you the benefit of the
doubt.
But asking me a question of all
questions.
A choice of all choices.
You are instilling in me that
having parents of different
descent isn’t normal.
When an artist mixes his
pigments, it is to create
something new.
A color that is a reflection of all
his original hues.
My parents, the starting colors.
Me, the reflection of them both.
I Don’t Understand
by Liyah Rashid, 2023
“Oh my gosh! What a beautiful little baby, where’d you get her from?”
A mother swivels in shock, eyeing the caramel brown child that she created.
She did not “get” her baby girl like groceries from a store.
The little girl with coiled hair and full lips freezes in her spot.
Deep chocolate eyes full of stars stare back up at her.
The little girl doesn’t understand.
Time passes, that little girl has grown into a young woman.
Mommy can’t fight her battles anymore.
With the same brown skin, she’s forced to take on the world.
“So if your mom is white, how are you brown?”
“Is your dad in jail?”
“She was a fresh air child wasn’t she.”
“After summer break I’m going to be as dark as you!”
I still don’t understand
I don’t understand the abundance of cruel worlds and cold hearts.
I don’t understand the people who see skin color before souls.
I don’t understand why we all can’t reach out and embrace.
Maybe one day
We can construct a world,
In which we all stand united to extinguish hate.
Body Defines You
by Makaylee Gossard, 2023
Women:
looked at differently just because of the body
“Wow you’re so pretty with a body like that”
That is what makes women tremble in their shoes
That is what makes their throats clench
Your body equals your existence
Your body over personality
Your body equals who will talk to you
Your body is the judgment you get
“You’re not thick”
“Oh you don’t have big boobs”
“You don’t have the good body type”
What is the good body type?
No matter what, you’re too skinny or too fat
No matter what, you're too hefty or too flat
Body is seen over beauty
Body is heard over personality
Body defines
We are locked up in cages
Not heard
Not treated right
Not noticed
Locked up, with a world in front of us
So much potential
So much fate
Just judged
Just labeled: “fat girl,” “anorexic girl,” “flat girl”
All because of a body we were born to have