The Power of Poetry

Poetry has been blooming with power this month, not just the April showers.

National Poetry Month isn’t just a celebration of rhymes and words, but it’s a reminder that poetry has always had something to say and, oftentimes throughout history, something to fight for. Whether scribbled in the margins of the past or shouted from the stage, poems have played vessels of protest, resilience, and resistance. And in the moments when voices have been silenced, poetry has endured as a weapon and a force for change.

Poets have always stood at the forefront of social change, using the magic of words to challenge the status quo. One of the most significant examples of this is the Harlem Renaissance, a cultural movement in the early 20th century that centered in Harlem, New York. It was a time when Black artists, writers, and musicians came together to express their experiences in an artistic format. This era gave rise to powerful voices like Langston Hughes, whose poems spoke directly to the realities of racial inequality. 

Poetry often takes root in places where freedom of expression is under threat. In oppressive regimes, underground zines and prison poetry have become forms of resistance that transform spaces into safe havens for the truth. When censorship rises, poetry is often one of the first things silenced, yet it’s also one of the hardest to wipe away.

At IFEP, we value poetry as more than just an art form; it’s a tool for activism, a form of journalism, and a powerful way to push for change. That’s why we stand with artists and writers who challenge power and speak for those who are too often pushed aside. Free expression doesn’t live only in headlines; it lives in poems, songs, and stories that carry real change forward, sometimes quietly, but always with strength.