DC SCORES Gears Up For Poetry Slams at Historic Moment

DC SCORES is preparing to host the DMV’s largest youth spoken word events amidst a historic moment for the District and the country. 

Every November, more than 3,000 DC SCORES participants, known as poet-athletes, take to the stage as part of the nonprofit’s fall poetry curriculum.

DC SCORES’ slams are hotly anticipated during election years, when the District’s young people take the nation’s pulse, share their thoughts about the issues that dominated campaigns, and advocate for their vision for the future of their communities and the country.

In 2016, just weeks after Donald Trump was first elected to the presidency, poet-athletes used the slam stage to share their reactions to, among other things, Hillary Clinton’s defeat, which crushed one poet-athlete’s dream of seeing a woman in the White House, while in 2012, poet-athletes raised their voices to implore President Obama to prioritize issues they cared about, such as increasing funding for education and the environment, ahead of his second term.

Audience members at this year’s Middle School Slam (November 13), Westside Slam (November 23), and Eastside Slam (November 23) will hear young people’s takes on issues that dominated the 2024 election cycle, from the experience of immigrant communities to women’s rights and the role of the police. 

DC SCORES poetry slams represent the culmination of the fall season for DC SCORES, which serves thousands of youth at more than 65 D.C. public and public charter elementary and middle schools. Poet-athletes participate in programming during out-of-school time five days a week.

In the fall, young people form close-knit bonds with their teammates on the soccer field and explore issues they care about by writing poetry together. In the spring, poet-athletes continue to build community by strengthening their teamwork on the field and designing local service projects addressing issues they identified through their poetry. 

As the District, and the United States, prepares for what is likely to be one of the most consequential presidential terms in American history, DC SCORES slams will be a powerful opportunity for young people to reflect on this historic moment and champion their own vision for the future.