by
Lesléa Newman
Raymond Chase
Tyler Clementi
Billy Lucas
Asher Brown
Seth Walsh
Carl Walker-Hoover
19 years old
18 years old
15 years old
13 years old
13 years old
11 years old
Raymond Chase
Tyler Clementi
Billy Lucas
Asher Brown
Seth Walsh
Carl Walker-Hoover
“Fag”
“Faggot”
“Fairy”
“Sissy”
“Homo”
“Queer”
Raymond Chase
Tyler Clementi
Billy Lucas
Asher Brown
Seth Walsh
Carl Walker-Hoover
punched
slapped
kicked
chased
tackled
stripped
Raymond Chase
Tyler Clementi
Billy Lucas
Asher Brown
Seth Walsh
Carl Walker-Hoover
ashamed
afraid
enraged
depressed
defeated
alone
Raymond Chase
Tyler Clementi
Billy Lucas
Asher Brown
Seth Walsh
Carl Walker-Hoover
Hanged himself
Drowned himself
Hanged himself
Shot himself
Hanged himself
Hanged himself
Raymond Chase
Tyler Clementi
Billy Lucas
Asher Brown
Seth Walsh
Carl Walker-Hoover
Friend
Brother
Cousin
Teammate
Classmate
Mama’s Boy
"Teen Angels" copyright ©2013 Lesléa Newman. Reprinted by permission of the author.
Perhaps some or all of the six names in Lesléa Newman's Teen Angels were familiar to you before you read the poem, but I'd be willing to bet that now you'll remember them all the next time you see them... and you'll know why. What a powerful piece of writing!
Whether in her standalone poems, novels, or picture books (over 20 of them, by the way, including the oft-challenged Heather Has Two Mommies), I think it's safe to say that Lesléa Newman writes from her heart, and we're the lucky beneficiaries. It's a phrase say frequently in April, but, darn it, it's true: I'm an unabashed fan... and I'm thrilled to have her here today as part of 30 Poets/30 Days. Yesterday, John Foster showed us how to Add a Letter, Find Another Word. Tomorrow... Dave Crawley with Eye of the Hawk! For more on 30 Poets/30 Days and ways to follow along, please click here.
6 comments:
Wow! Powerful!
I'm sad to read the poem, but proud to say that we have Leslea's books in our library, & embrace all families and children in our school. Thanks Leslea for writing it like life is. And thanks Greg for having Leslea on your blog.
Horrible and Beautiful, all at once. Thank you, Leslea, and thank you, Greg!
Lee
It's important to remember that Poetry has a dark side. It is through the dark that we see light again. Thank you for this lesson Leslea and Greg.
A listing of woe, which raises the hair on my arms. And yet, the names I now will not forget.
I so admire Lesléa's ability to pick the right forms and techniques. Repetition is the perfect device for this poem that makes us wonder: how many times must tragedies of this sort be repeated?
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