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April 2006: Focus on Poetry | Download full text (pdf)

National Poetry Month
As T. S. Eliot wrote, "April is the cruelest month" - the Academy of American Poets hopes that National Poetry Month lessens that effect. National Poetry Month was established by the Academy of American Poets as a month-long, national celebration of poetry in April 1996. The goal was to achieve an increase in the visibility, presence, and accessibility of poetry in American culture. National Poetry Month has grown over the years into the largest literary celebration in the world. Thousands of businesses and non-profit organizations participate through readings, festivals, book displays, workshops, and other events. In her poem “Spring”, Edna St. Vincent Millay asked, "To what purpose, April, do you return again?" For National Poetry Month, of course!

The Poet Laureate - Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress
The Poet Laureate serves “as the nation's official lightning rod for the poetic impulse of Americans.” During his or her term, the Poet Laureate seeks to raise the national consciousness to a greater appreciation of the reading and writing of poetry. The position has existed since 1937. Each Laureate brings a different emphasis to the position...

Poetry Slams Rock Literary WorldWhat is a concert without music? What is a game show without a game? What literary movement has swept the United States and much of the rest of the world over the last few years? These apparently unrelated questions have the same unlikely answer: poetry slams...

Jazz and Poetry - Jazz Appreciation Month
April is also Jazz Appreciation Month. Created by African-Americans as a fusion of West African musical traits with European and folk elements and subsequently enriched by contributions from across the globe, jazz remains among America’s prized contributions to world culture. The musicality of words is an important element of poetry, and many poets carefully consider the sound of the words on the page. Nowhere perhaps is the relationship between music and words closer than in jazz poetry. Beginning with the birth of blues and jazz, jazz poetry can be seen as a thread that runs through the Harlem Renaissance, the Beat movement, and the Black Arts Movement. From early blues to free jazz to experimental music, jazz poets use their appreciation for the music as poetic inspiration. One of the most popular forms of American poetry, the blues poem stems from the African American oral tradition and the musical tradition of the blues...

Soccer and Poetry
What the rest of the world calls football, is known as soccer in the United States. Soccer became extremely popular among young athletes in the 1990s. Registration for U.S. Youth Soccer Association teams has almost doubled since 1990-91. Thanks to America SCORES, an innovative after-school program, thousands of urban kids are benefit from a combination of soccer and poetry classes to improve their scores both in the classroom and on the playground...

Rachel Carson – Environmentalist, Biologist and Poet
Rachel Carson, is credited with launching the contemporary environmental movement and awakening concern by thinking Americans about the environment. As a child, she wanted to be a writer and throughout her career, it was her unique ability to present deeply intricate scientific material in clear poetic language that captivated her readers and piqued their interest in the natural world...

Earth Day and the Rise of Environmental Consciousness
Earth Day, April 22, is the annual celebration of the environment and a time to assess the work still needed to protect the natural gifts of our planet. Earth Day is observed around the world, although nowhere is it a national holiday. Earth Day also has no central organizing force behind it although several non-governmental organizations work to keep track of the thousands of local events in schools and parks that mark the day. In the United States, Earth Day affirms that environmental awareness is part of the country's consciousness and that the idea of protecting the environment - once the province of a few conservationists - has moved from the extreme to the mainstream of American thought...

In the News: How To Become An American Citizen – Einbürgerung “auf Amerikanisch”
As a result of current discussions in Germany regarding the naturalization of immigrants, comparisons have been drawn to procedures in the United States. As part of the Department of Homeland Security, the Office of Citizenship is mandated by the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to promote instruction and training on citizenship rights and responsibilities and to provide immigrants with information and tools necessary to successfully integrate into American civic culture. Its primary focus lies on providing information and resources to immigrants at two key points in their journey towards civic integration: when they first become permanent residents and when they are ready and eligible to begin the formal naturalization process...

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