Pongo Poetry Project’s mission is to engage youth in writing poetry to inspire healing and growth. For over 20 years, Pongo has mentored poetry with youth at the Clark Children & Family Justice Center (CCFJC), King County’s juvenile detention facility.
Many CCFJC residents are youth of color who have endured traumatic experiences in the form of abuse, neglect, and exposure to violence. These incidents have been caused and exacerbated by community disinvestment, systemic racism, and other forms of institutional oppression. In collaboration with CCFJC staff, Pongo poetry writing offers CCFJC youth a vehicle for self-discovery and creative expression that inspires recovery and healing.
Through this special monthly column in partnership with the South Seattle Emerald, Pongo invites readers to bear witness to the pain, resilience, and creative capacity of youth whose voices and perspectives are too often relegated to the periphery. To learn more about Pongo’s work of inspiring healing and relief among youth coping with mental and emotional turmoil, register for Speaking Volumes 2024 today.
by a young person at CCFJC
What if I sigh, and the black earth beneath me scatters like insects running from my breath?
–from the poem “Respiration” by Jamaal May
I feel like that every day
I feel like I messed up a lot in my life
it makes me upset
if I say the wrong thing is everybody going to hate me
that’s like insects running from my breath
or if I say the right thing is everybody going to like me
My grandma used to say
If you say the wrong words, it could get you hurt
If you work to your goal you’re going to get somewhere
if you don’t try, you’re getting nowhere
It’s just like homework.
I’m a lot to keep up with.
I got my baby on the way.
And I got a question to that,
will it mess with me later in life?
Am I a god then?
by a young person at CCFJC
When I was younger
And I came to juvie
It was always a slap on the wrist
And I wouldn’t be in here for that long
So I’d get out and go back to doing
The same things
Because I knew the punishment
Wasn’t going to be
That bad
But now that I’m older
And in here
And doing major time
For my crime
I’ve realized
This isn’t a slap on the wrist
This is a wakeup call
And I realized
If I keep doing and making
The same mistakes
I’m gonna get nowhere
In life
And since I’m getting older
I’m gonna have to deal with
Adult time
And going to county
And you’re only 18 for so long
So when I get out
I don’t plan on kicking it with the
Same crowd of people
Or going back to doing the same
Rebellious stuff
I plan on
Finishing school
In here
And getting my diploma
I’m going to kick it with people who
Benefit me
And uplift me to do better things
And keep me on track
I’m going to
Get a job
And make legal money
I wanna go to Atlanta
I want to start a business too
I know this is going to be hard
It’s an addiction to not kick it with the same people
And go back to making the same decisions
But I feel like
I can tackle this addiction
Like I’ve tackled many others
I believe I can do it
And I believe in myself
by a young person at CCFJC
One of my earliest memories was when I rode a bike for the first time
When I rode my bike I felt a rush throughout my body
Another one of my memories is playing football for the infamous All-Stars
I felt like I could do almost anything on the football field
Another memory I had was after that my family became homeless for about a year
I felt it was normal but I know it wasn’t
It was kind of weird
We were living in my mom’s van
In 2014 my dad passed and things went downhill from there
I kind of hid my emotions away without processing them
Now I know that I should have expressed my emotions
And not leave them in to explode one day
Now I’m looking forward to going to college
And getting my welding degree
Doing welding will set me up to be a successful person
And provide for my family
At this moment I’m not sure I want to have a family
But I’ll keep my mind open to the possibility
When I’m not working, I would like to play
Basketball, play video games
And hang out with the family
My mom is very important to me
Cause when I’m down to my lowest she is there to support me
I hope that I keep on the path to doing well
To be a better role model for my little brothers
And help them to grow up to be good young men