Daniel D’Amore
reporter

An NE Campus event Sept. 30 discussed the cultural revolution in Black America that led to the rise in hip-hop and spoken word poetry in the U.S.

A series of speakers and performers read poetry and talked about the historical backdrop behind various aspects of Black culture.

NE sociology professor Murray Fortner discussed what was going on with Black culture at the time and how poets used their platform to help people. 

“You have all kinds of writing that came out of this period that spoke to the conditions of uplifting Black people,” Fortner said. “In the 1960s movement, not only were the poets speaking about liberation and empowerment, you also had pop culture that did it. There was a marriage between pop culture, civil rights and the church. It was a beautiful movement.”

NE English instructor Azure Arther said her department wanted to try something new this semester, and its Creative Intersections: Hip Hop, Pop Culture and The Spoken Word was the presentation they created. 

“I hope the audience enjoys itself, learns something about poetry, finds the courage to perform for the first time and gets inspired by the poets they see,” Arther said before the event.

NE student Alfredo Padron attended the event and enjoyed being part of something that focused on poetry. 

“What I got out of it is it didn’t matter if you were a poet or interested in becoming one,” Padron said. “Students have a platform to perform their poems for the first time and that’s something special in itself.”