Amanda Gorman

Amanda S.C. Gorman was born on 7 March 1998 in Los Angeles, California, and grew up with a speech impediment affecting certain sounds, which she has described as initially a source of significant self-consciousness that she gradually transformed into a strength through poetry and performance, developing precise control over language and sound as a way of managing and eventually overcoming her early speech difficulties.

Gorman began writing poetry as a young child and became involved in youth poetry programmes in Los Angeles, and in 2014, at age sixteen, was named the first ever national Youth Poet Laureate of Los Angeles. In 2017, while an undergraduate at Harvard University studying sociology, she became the first person named National Youth Poet Laureate of the United States, a role recognising exceptional young poets committed to civic engagement and social change through their work.

Gorman graduated cum laude from Harvard in 2020, and that same year was invited by First Lady Jill Biden, who had encountered her work previously, to compose and deliver an original poem for the January 2021 presidential inauguration of Joe Biden. At 22 years old, Gorman became the youngest inaugural poet in United States history, delivering her poem 'The Hill We Climb' to a national and international audience in the aftermath of the January 6th attack on the US Capitol, her poem directly addressing the nation's political division and the promise of unity and repair.

Gorman's inaugural performance produced an immediate and dramatic surge in public attention, with her poetry collection selling out on multiple online retailers within hours of her performance and reaching the top of bestseller lists, an unusually rapid commercial response for a poetry publication. She subsequently became the youngest poet to perform at a Super Bowl, delivering a poem honouring frontline pandemic workers before Super Bowl LV in February 2021.

Gorman has continued a substantial public career combining poetry, writing and advocacy, publishing the bestselling children's book Change Sings and further poetry collections, while also working as a model, having signed with a major modelling agency, and using her public platform to advocate for civic engagement, racial justice and climate action among young audiences specifically. In 2023 several of her books, including 'The Hill We Climb,' faced restriction or removal challenges in some US school districts and libraries amid broader controversies over book access, incidents Gorman publicly addressed as troubling examples of censorship.

Gorman has stated publicly her long-term ambition to run for President of the United States, and has continued building a substantial public platform combining literary achievement with youth-focused civic and political advocacy, remaining, in her twenties, one of the most recognised young literary and public figures in contemporary American life.