The youth in Meredith Arena’s poetry class at Spruce Street produced a plethora of poetry last school year. Their collective words have been assembled into a book, which you can download and read below.

Arts Corps has a long-standing partnership with Spruce Street Inn, which provides safe residential services for youth who are in crisis. This class was taught by Meredith Arena and supported by Ludin Mejia.

Here is a sampling of the voices in the book:

Yeah he’s black, but he’s my EQUAL
Yeah he’s Mexican, but we’re the SAME
Yeah he’s Asian, but we’re one TOGETHER
WE ARE EQUAL
-Rich

Personal Growth

With no one to aspire to
and no one to lean on,
I created my own path,
free of hatred and con.
A stretched out journey
with no simple short cuts.
I soon realized every experience is an opportunity for learning.

-Arcadia

Read the entire book: