We, the successors of a country and a time where a skinny Black girl descended from slaves and raised by a single mother can dream of becoming president, only to find herself reciting for one.Īnd, yes, we are far from polished, far from pristine, but that doesn't mean we are striving to form a union that is perfect. Somehow we weathered and witnessed a nation that isn't broken, but simply unfinished. We've learned that quiet isn't always peace, and the norms and notions of what 'just' is isn't always justice.Īnd yet the dawn is ours before we knew it. When day comes, we ask ourselves, where can we find light in this never-ending shade? Here is the text of Gorman's poem, 'The Hill We Climb,' in full. 'Here's to the women who have climbed my hills before,' Gorman tweeted. Martin Luther King Jr.ĭuring her reading, Gorman wore a ring with a caged bird, a gift from Oprah for the occasion and tribute to symbolize Maya Angelou, a previous inaugural poet. Gorman drew inspiration from the speeches of American leaders during other historic times of division, including Abraham Lincoln and the Rev. 'There is space for grief and horror and hope and unity, and I also hope that there is a breath for joy in the poem, because I do think we have a lot to celebrate at this inauguration.' 'We have to confront these realities if we're going to move forward, so that's also an important touchstone of the poem,' she told the Times. The poet, whose work examines themes of race and racial justice in America, felt she couldn't 'gloss over' the events of the attack, nor of the previous few years, in her work. Gorman ended up staying up late following the unprecedented attack and finished her piece, 'The Hill We Climb,' that night. 6, pro-Trump rioters stormed the Capitol Building. Gorman told The New York Times she wasn't given any direction in what to write, but that she would be contributing to the event's theme of 'America United.' She was about halfway finished with the piece when, on Jan.

Amanda gorman quotes the hill we climb