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Northern Iowan

The student news site of the University of Northern Iowa

Northern Iowan

The student news site of the University of Northern Iowa

Northern Iowan

A different way to slam poetry at UNI

A+different+way+to+slam+poetry+at+UNI

Kind faces, unique stories and an atmosphere accepting of free expression with absolutely no judgment. A packed room of UNI students listened silently to a word of warning from the event’s co-host, Natalie Kaufman: “This first piece for you tonight has a content warning.” 

70-plus students flocked to the Center for Multicultural Education Tuesday to express themselves with their poetry — to give voice to soul — or to just listen to some slam poems.

 It was an open and accepting event, the inaugural Progressive Poetry Slam, hosted by the Feminist Action League in partnership with the Progressive Coalition. 

“I think that this is a really great event for people to say what they want to say in a safe place. I’m doing a piece and I’m looking forward to being able to speak freely and know that nobody else is going to judge me,” Kaufman, sophomore psychology and philosophy double major and director of public relations for the FAL, said.

The FAL is a feminist group on campus, striving for equality between the sexes. The Progressive Coalition is a conglomerate of all progressive groups on campus: The Northern Iowa Democrats, the Philosophy Club, UNI S.T.A.R.R., UNI Free Thinkers and Inquirers, in addition to FAL. 

The FAL partnership with the Coalition birthed the inaugural Progressive Poetry Slam, which allowed its 22 participants a platform for expression. 

The dynamics of the event provided a rollercoaster ride for its attendees. The various pieces performed had the crowd finger-snapping to indicate its approval, crying at the heartbreak in emotionally-laden poems or even laughing uncontrollably; often within the same piece. 

Themes for the poems ranged from issues of sexual orientation and feminist expressions, to poems of grief resulting from teen suicide and even, in a moment of comic relief, a reading of various comments from the popular social media app Tinder.

Kaufman first conceived of the idea for the event as a new and different type of Poetry Slam. 

“There are a couple of poetry slams throughout the year that are done by the English Club, and I thought that doing one specifically by the progressive groups on campus would be really beneficial because we all have unique stories to talk about,” Kaufman said. “There are members of the LGBT movement [and] the Feminist Action League [participating]. We have a lot of people who are struggling and we feel that this is important for them.”

“It is important to support your friends and it’s important to support an event that is trying to create a positive [environment] for the University [students], especially in light of recent events,” said Alieda Torres, sophomore history major and attendant of the Poetry Slam.     

Torres referred to anonymous racist, sexist and homophobic remarks posted on a social media app called Yik Yak, which were protested at the Day of Solidarity demonstration. 

Katherine Short, junior supply chain management major, took part in the event with a reading of her own. Short who saw this poetry slam as an opportunity to surround herself in an accepting, judge-free environment took the plunge to perform her poetry.

 “So I finally decided to read, and I have a lot of poems and other pieces that I have been writing over the years and this was the best way to get some of that out there,” Short said.

The Progressive Poetry slam was a place for equality; for each unique individual to contribute his or her verse to a night of expression with the only censorship coming in the form of a pre-reading caution of: “This piece contains a content warning.” 

“We come from a pretty liberal state in general, but UNI does a really great job with their Pride program and helping gay people and just making sure everyone feels included with the [Safe Zone] Ally Program and the Dean of Students has its own [LGBT Center] and it’s just… It’s a good place for gay people,” Short said. 

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