Going to the America SCORES National Poetry SLAM! -- Meet Leron

Written by Kristen Miano
Digital Media Intern

Leron B., a fourth-grader at Imagine Hope Community Charter School -- Tolson Campus in Washington DC, drew inspiration for his award-winning poem from an unlikely source: history class.

“My poem is about how people weren’t free, like in slavery, when the African Americans weren’t free and people had to fight for freedom in the Civil War,” Leron said. “I was learning about it, and that’s why I made the poem.”

Leron’s poem not only won him the Shine Award at the Eastside DC SCORES Poetry Slam! in December, but it also got him a ticket to New York City where he will take the stage with other young poets from across the nation at the America SCORES National Poetry SLAM!

“I’m excited to see all the buildings,” Leron said of the trip. “Well, no. Just that one building. The really tall one.”

Leron, of course, means the Empire State Building, one of the many destinations he and DC SCORES’ other representative, Jency M., will find themselves at during their trip.

While he’s very excited about going to New York, LeRon confessed that he’s feeling a little anxious.

“I’m nervous because I’m going to be in front of a lot of people,” Leron said.

When he performed his poem at the Slam! in December, Leron said he wasn’t as nervous because the theater was dark and he couldn’t see the audience.

“And I was having fun because I was backstage before, yelling and goofing around,” he said.

Leron said his favorite part of writing poetry is the chance to get on stage and do some acting, but he also enjoys the creative process that goes into crafting a poem.

“I like writing poetry because I get to write a rhythm and have a lot of fun,” he said. “I started writing poetry because I was in DC SCORES and I was just having fun.”

Beyond the writing and the rhymes, Leron attests that he has learned an important lesson from his experience writing poetry.

“I learned what freedom is,” he said. “I learned how some people might not be free and what it’s all about.”

On April 13, Leron will perform that lesson for hundreds of people on another big stage. Stay tuned!