Speaking Identity: The Urban Migrant

Poetry provides an artistic lens for viewing almost any issue, but spoken word, which represents the rising generation's reclamation of traditional literary expression, pushes the envelope. This art form not only reveals the poet's words but allows them to fully control the delivery and thus interpretation of those words through voice inflection, volume, rhythm, and gestures. Spoken word has evolved throughout the past few decades as a captivating artistic expression of urban voices, blooming most rapidly in youthful cities. This tumblr collection unites urban poets discussing the identity struggle that accompanies migration and serves to highlight the fact that while many migrant troubles and triumphs are universal, each person experiences and recalls the journey in a very unique way.

[themigrantidentity]

This poet confronts the complexities that accompany her mixed race heritage; she, as well as many people around her, struggles to reconcile being of Mexican, Native American and Spanish descent. She recounts the issues of language, culture, and the hypocrisy of judging without truly understanding a situation, for, she claims, we are all human and thus connected. 

[themigrantidentity]

The poet uses suggestive imagery and graphic metaphors as a veil for his criticism of the of the United States' hypocritical immigration policy. He asserts that the founders of the United States were immigrants, but now this very same country paradoxically turns a blind eye to immigrants. 

[themigrantidentity]

Zehra discusses the language barrier that she initially faced transitioning into English from the Urdu she spoke in Pakistan. In order to avoid being ostracized, she willingly assimilated into western cultural norms. She highlights that her family's story is not inherently unique, as every family's history is rife with stories of migration. 

[themigrantidentity]

Hollie McNish illuminates the absurdity of a British man's anti-immigrant attitude. She question his assumption that immigrants take more than they give, and asserts that his xenophobia is based on unsubstantiated prejudices. 

[themigrantidentity]

Sarah Kay and Phil Kaye collaborate in this performance to demonstrate how shared culture creates an especially impenetrable friendship. Rather than focusing on the struggles of being a misfit, they choose to embrace the unity their backgrounds enable. 

[themigrantidentity]

Rachel Rostad discusses an immigrant's identity crisis through the lens of her culturally confusing name. She is proud of her American culture while still searching for the same feeling in her more distant Korean heritage. 

[themigrantidentity]

This poet passionately explores the pain and bullying that an immigrant child experiences at the hands of an otherwise homogenous classroom. She and the other students takes note of physical and cultural differences, but she struggles to make sense of why they render her inferior. Ultimately, she takes pride in her culture, standing against those who would find her lesser. 

[themigrantidentity]

Nadine Williams highlights the importance of being in touch with one's history and ancestry. In contrast to other poems on this topic, she focuses on the beauty of the past rather than the hardships that scar it. 

[themigrantidentity]

Wyclef Jean explores a child immigrants realization of his uniqueness. Even though his customs and qualities do not conform to popular notions of American "properness," they reflect his Haitian heritage, a past in which he learns to take pride.