Poetess and Harvard graduate Amanda Gorman may be just 25 years old, but she has already used her gift with words to elevate America’s consciousness. As the nation’s first National Youth Poet Laureate, Gorman personifies the possibility of the next generation of leaders. Her poem “The Hill We Climb,” which she read at President Biden’s inauguration, speaks of hope, the past, the future and the reality that “a skinny Black girl descended from slaves and raised by a single mother can dream of becoming a president, only to find herself reciting for one.” With a regal presence and poise well beyond her years, Gorman—who recently became the first poet to grace the cover of Vogue—does not shy away from using her poetry to speak about the social injustices happening in the world today. 

Amanda Gorman turned heads when she delivered “The Hill We Climb” at the inauguration of President Joe Biden in 2021. Born in Los Angeles, Gorman enjoyed reading and writing as a child and was further encouraged by her mother to pursue her passion. Though the Black female poet had a speech impediment during her childhood, she viewed it as a gift and a strength rather than a crutch.  

Soon, she began writing poetry focused on issues of oppression, feminism, race, marginalization, and the African diaspora. Her first poetry book, The One for Whom Food Is Not Enough, was published in 2015. In no time, Gorman became the first person to be named National Youth Poet Laureate and the youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history. After the 22-year-old African-American poet recited her inauguration poem, she received international acclaim and two of her books became best-sellers.