Thank you so much for joining HRC in April to celebrate National Poetry Month with HRC Foundation’s Welcoming Schools.

The Welcoming Schools program uses the power of poetry in its lesson plans to help children share and explore issues they are passionate about, to make connections around social justice and to build inclusive communities by learning about and celebrating one another’s differences.

This month, HRC featured poems from young people speaking to the power of love and inclusion, highlighted some amazing LGBTQ poets and talked with an educator about how her work uses art and poetry to bring people together.

As this month draws to a close, HRC wanted to share a few more powerful poems from young people writing about social justice, equality and freedom.

Freedom means happiness
Freedom makes me happy
No one has control of me

I can do what I like
Freedom means nobody has pushed me
I am free when I can be me
~ Kavion

Freedom is a happy thing, I wish everyone had
Sitting on a bed of flowers hearing the birds sing a happy song
Sitting hand in hand
~ Kaylee

Freedom it enlightened one’s soul giving it chances

It gives happiness and joy you feel open

It will take you out of a box

When the word freedom meets the eye, a wave of emotions strike weather

It’s good, bad, mad or sad

We can agree it improves our lives

It will take you by the hand into freedom

~ Mitchell