2017 AIHEC Student Poetry Slam Video
On the opening evening of the 2017 AIHEC Student Conference in Rapid City, students from an array of TCUs entertained conference goers with the spoken word at the annual poetry slam.
Poetry
Cheii’s House
Another World by Art Paige Allen of of Dine College
Walking into house It smells like cedar and soap Forgets all troubles Samantha Mitchell is a single parent of two beautiful children who motivate her to pursue her degree so that she can provide a better life for them. She …
To be an:
Carmen in the Cupboard by Carmen Selam of the Institute of American Indian Arts
Overarching assumption restricted to stigmA Reluctantly given access to the American dreaM Ironically, only reserved for their first refugE Granted rights and ownership but revised on papeR Involuntarily added to cultural genocide alumnI Neglected healthy natural diet until clinically diabetiC …
Where the Dragons Live
Untitled I by Tammy Hammer of Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College
I live on the south side of a peninsula, on the borders of society, subtle changes from boulders to sand. Witness the exchange of forces between the tide and the moon, follow the tracks of the wary animals calling this …
From the Dark to the Light
Highway Cannon by Tyrel Iron Eyes of Sitting Bull College
That one look that showed you the world of Ego Its breeze suddenly springs into the season being Spiritual Then right in front of me sat a teacher of teachers, Silence Motionless he sat right in front me, with knowledge …
Sundance for All My Relations
Solo by Ruby Hansen Murray of the Institute of American Indian Arts
I stomp my brown feet in the red desert sands then claw my way down a pine covered mountain to bathe in a misty shroud of morning and listen as the Great Mystery thunders out another universal warning How …
Sister’s Giveaway
Star Infancy 3C219 by Gregory M. Analla of the Institute of American Indian Arts
You could have worn the black stripe Pendleton yourself if you’d come down to Oklahoma to get named in the Quaker church in Hominy. All of us cousins on trust land with our Morrell relatives near Pettit Street named …
With Reservation
I am from recycled goods, bus passes, and borrowed books, walking in the canyons, biking in the woods, reading about places I want to visit, hearing about people I want to meet, riding the bus alone. I am from homes …
2016 AIHEC Student Poetry Slam
At the 2016 AIHEC student conference in Minneapolis, tribal college students from around the country made their voices heard by competing in the annual slam poetry competition.
Similarity
A quiet room knows how many steps you’ve taken in a dream, considering you’ve been turning to the semblance of an unknown person. The sound of a river silking is hair singed, laminating darkened landscape. I still remember the darkened …