

Get Lit WHY I RISE Poetry Contest
LACOE

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Get Lit WHY I RISE Poetry Contest
May 1 - May 31
The conversation around mental health has never been more important.
This year’s Why I Rise competition provided students with an outlet to share their voice: their struggle and hope, their pain and their joy.
Thank you everyone who submitted poems this year!
TOP 5 LA POETS $1,000 WINNERS
Sierra Leone Anderson – If Memory is a Parent
Cortunay Minor – To Have, and To Lose
Elora Sparnicht – At Seventeen
Audrey Schlief – Brain Chemistry
Sophia Bazini Barakat – Grocery Shopping For My Identity
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL WINNER $1,000
Jada Marie-Pierre – I wish, I wish, I wish
HONORABLE MENTIONS $100
Mayra Ortiz – A conversation while washing dishes
Dharma Lemon – Obituary For Toxic Positivity
Alyssa Parton – Cold Blankets
Christian Celestine – Watermelon and Rainbows
Catherine Peng – yesterday i watched “everything, everywhere, all at once” and that night, i slept like a baby
Sam (Yusheng) Luo – When the Life Gave the Gay Boy Lemons
Self-expression through poetry and performance is a powerful way to connect with, process and communicate your experiences and aspirations. Spoken word poetry brings out the storyteller in each of us, and builds a community of connection for all of us.