We should not silence poetry, nor mute the dreams of achievement in the arts. On July 2nd, 2003, 18 years ago, the position of New Jersey Poet Laureate was tragically abolished due to a controversial poem. We were left with a generation of aspiring poets who had no tutelage from a laureate of their own state, no state recognized position of honor in their craft to attain to, and the sense that New Jersey holds tenuous regard for poetry itself.

And yet, poetry is not dead in New Jersey. Our history is too rich with prose for it to ever die. We are home to the Dodge Poetry Festival, where people flock from all over the country to experience one of our nation’s premier poetry events. We are home to the Paterson Poetry Festival, where slam poetry still lives and beats. We have birthed multiple Pulitzer Prize winning poets. Only eight individuals have won the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry more than once. Two of those poets grew up in New Jersey.

New Jersey’s participation in Poetry Out Loud is amongst the strongest in the states. Two rest stops on the New Jersey Turnpike are named after poets; Joyce Kilmer was born and educated in New Jersey, where he later taught and wrote “Trees.” Walt Whitman completed Leaves of Grass in Camden.

Open mics abound in Newark, in Jersey City, in Morristown and Princeton and Montclair. We host literary magazines, small presses, writing groups, degree programs, book fairs and workshops. Some municipalities even claim their own laureates. And yet, we do not have a New Jersey Poet Laureate to represent our state amongst the 48 others with laureates. We deserve to be represented in this majority. We deserve a voice. It has never been in the spirit of our state to silence. This is New Jersey. 

Achievement looks different to a poet. There is little fortune and glory, and still, we know that artists are essential to the expression of society. The Garden State does its part by sprouting poets as varied as its habitats. We come from The Highlands and The Pine Barrens, from cities and alleyways. We come from the sea, from rock and meadow, from Manhattan’s bedroom. We come from factories, malls, and gardens, hospitals and farms. A position that acknowledges our hard work, talent, and heritage is culturally appropriate. Let us not allow the devaluation of an art form through inaction. Please support the reinstatement of the position of New Jersey Poet Laureate. Thank you.