ERIC DEGGANS, HOST:
Poet and author Amanda Gorman offers a key line in her picture book for young readers called "Girls On The Rise" that seems to sum up the focus of her inspirational story. When one girl is on the rise, it means everyone else is, too. I can't think of a better sentiment to kick off a discussion in the new year with Amanda Gorman, the youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history - she spoke at Joe Biden's inauguration in 2021 - as well as the first person to be named the National Youth Poet Laureate, and a bestselling author here to talk about "Girls On The Rise." Amanda, welcome.
AMANDA GORMAN: Hey, thanks for having me.
DEGGANS: All right. So first, how did you get the idea to create this picture book? And is - I'm wondering if it's connected at all to this poem that you wrote in 2021 called "We Rise."
GORMAN: Yes, absolutely. So I wrote "We Rise" a few years ago. Its inception was actually around the time when Dr. Blasey Ford was testifying in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee. And I really wanted to write a poem just for myself because I was feeling so many emotions watching that testimony. And so that began as a poem that I wrote for myself. I shared it with some organizations that have done incredible work, like Vital Voices, which uplift so many female leaders. And so it started as, really, a passion project, you know, wanting to celebrate the organizations that I know who have done so much celebrating the truth of women.
DEGGANS: Man, I wish that people listening could see the vibrant colors in the imagery in this book. I mean, in one illustration, we've got a group of girls standing in this lush field, and they're holding this banner that says liberation, freedom, respect. In another, we see them walking through a dark forest to find a friend holding a lantern. How did you bring on illustrator Loveis Wise and pick these images?
GORMAN: Loveis Wise is just incredible. And I knew that I wanted this book to be - and you nailed it so correctly - so vibrant, so less, so filled with life. Because talking about gender, talking about sexism can be incredibly challenging, A, for adults, let alone for children. And so I knew the pages had to create this very vivid, safe space in which all gender identities could feel that they were involved in this conversation of what it means to be a young person who identifies as a girl.
DEGGANS: Now, you bring up a great point, which is you're talking about subjects that some parents might think are relatively advanced, but you're trying to talk about them in a way that children can understand them. How do you get your messages about equality and resisting sexism and uplifting girls - how do you format that for a young audience?
GORMAN: I always write my books with the understanding that children are far more intelligent than we give them credit for, especially emotionally. I think there's this idea that talking about gender equality is too advanced for young children. But actually, they're asking these questions and living those experiences from an incredibly young age. I mean, I remember being a young girl and being, like, why are guys telling me that I throw like a girl? Like it's an insult.
DEGGANS: Right, right.
GORMAN: Why am I getting bullied by young boys in the class? Why are there these rules that I have to play with these toys or dress in this way or speak in this way to be accepted? And I think the sooner that we create a welcoming dialogue with children or they feel that they can voice, hey, this is what's going on with me, the more better the world will be for it.
DEGGANS: Now, you know, I wouldn't ask you to read the entire poem, which covers something like 18 pages in the book. But I was wondering if you could read the lines on page 8 to page 12, which I really liked.
GORMAN: (Reading) We are beautiful - not because of how we may appear, but how we look straight into the face of fear. Yes, being a girl takes a brave heart. Sometimes we might feel scared, lost and in the dark. Some days it feels too hard to stand up on our own. But here's the thing, when one girl stands up, she is never alone.
DEGGANS: That leads to my question, which is, why is it so important to emphasize how girls are stronger when they stand together?
GORMAN: I think because so often girls feel alone. I mean, I think the research shows us this as well as just everyday experiences that being a young girl in these times can be very difficult, very challenging. And I think that's going to continue unless there's a systemic change that makes sure that girls feel safe and protected. And the more that we can stand with them and amongst them as allies - and as me as a woman myself - then there's no longer this feeling of being alone, but being part of a community that shares your value.
DEGGANS: Well, you know, you look at the headlines nowadays, and this could be a discouraging moment for young girls. I mean, Kamala Harris was just defeated in her bid to become president. We see female stars like Blake Lively speaking out about dealing with the allegations about sexism and sexist behavior on sets. What do you tell young girls about how to handle the current climate?
GORMAN: You are totally right in that so much of the news and headlines are disheartening. And it's something that I talk about with my mom and also my friends, who are also woman. Just in so many ways, you are being emotionally, politically beat up right now. But on the flip side of that, I never see a, quote, unquote, "failure" as a be end - end-all of the progress for gender equity.
If anything, I look at the, quote, unquote, "defeats" of Hillary Clinton, Kamala Harris as progression. And I put quotes on that failure not because I am contesting that they were defeated in their elections. I don't. I'm putting quotes on those because if you look statistically, when women run, when we lead, when we truth tell, we might not make it exactly to where we had envisioned or where we had planned, but there is an entirety of waves that follow behind us. I'm so excited to see all of the other women who were going to see running after Kamala - not because she won, but because she lost. And that's what drives us forward to know this cannot be where it ends.
DEGGANS: Now, I have heard that you have a mantra that you say to yourself before every public appearance.
GORMAN: You are deep-diving. Now you're getting in...
DEGGANS: I'm doing my research here...
GORMAN: (Laughter).
DEGGANS: ...Right?
GORMAN: Yeah.
DEGGANS: Now, do you think you can say it for us?
GORMAN: Absolutely. So, the mantra that I say is, I am the daughter of Black writers. We are descended from freedom fighters who broke their chains and changed the world. They call me.
DEGGANS: Now, how does that inspire you now? And are you hoping to pass a similar inspiration onto the girls that read this book?
GORMAN: It's definitely a kind of ethos that I carry with me in whatever I do. And when I write, for example, this book for young girls, the idea isn't for them to adopt to my mantra, adopt to my philosophy as their own, but to create their own ideas on their own terms and what it means for them. And I think my ultimate hope with this book is that it's a book not just for girls, but for their families, for their communities, for their allies. For young boys to read it, too, would be amazing. For gender nonbinary children to read it and to feel as if they're a part of a historical context of belonging where their voice has power. Because when any marginalized group, including girls who are on the rise, all of us are on the ascent with them.
DEGGANS: That is Amanda Gorman, poet and author with illustrator Loveis Wise of the new children's picture book "Girls On The Rise." Thanks for joining us, Amanda.
GORMAN: Thanks for having me.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
