Semaj Brown, Flint Poet Laureate, Author and Educator

Flint Poet Laureate Semaj Brown gives a fascinating reading of her environmental injustice poems. Poet Semaj Brown shares stories of working with the child victims of the Flint Water Crisis. Brown is on a mission to help heal the trauma victims in Flint, Michigan.  

Semaj Brown is an amazingly accomplished woman who is a poet, author, playwright, and educator; she was named the first poet laureate of Flint, Michigan, in 2019. In 2021, she received an Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellowship. 

During her time as Flint's first poet laureate, she has taught children to write poetry at Flint's Freeman School, helping adults who privately write poetry as a form of healing and spreading the good word about the value of the literary arts across the Flint area. 

In this podcast episode, she reads two of her amazing poems. Her poems focus on Flint and social justice issues. They address issues of loss and empowerment. 

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This podcast episode is dedicated to the memory of Joseph M. Snow of Lansing, Michigan. Joe passed away on November 10, 2022, after a long illness. Joe was a lawyer, labor activist, and long-time member of the Lansing area Peace and Justice Coalition. He was an advocate for the working class and social justice issues. He was very fond of Semaj Brown's poetry. 

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You can learn more about Semaj Brown and her poems by:

• Visiting Semaj's author's website
• Find Semaj Brown on the website of the American Academy of Poets.
• Read a feature article about Semaj Brown that details her work and background can be located in My City Magazine. 
• The East Village Magazine reported that Semaj Brown was honored by the American Academy of Poets by receiving funding for her work with children in the Flint School District: Flint's first poet laureate was awarded $50K to infuse poetry throughout the city with a focus on literacy.

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