Chicago Poetry Tour Podcast

Established in 1940 by the WPA's Federal Art Project, the South Side Community Art Center has provided a second home for the city's African-American artists. Haki Madhubuti, founding editor of Third World Press, reads. Need a transcript of this episode? Request a transcript here.

One of the 20th century's most significant poets, Gwendolyn Brooks wrote about race in America, often from the perspective of her Bronzeville neighborhood.

Margaret Walker's signature poem "For My People" encompasses the strengths and struggles of Blacks not only in Chicago but throughout America. Need a transcript of this episode? Request a transcript here.

The DuSable Museum is one of the nation's premier institutions dedicated to the history, art, and culture of the African diaspora. Quraysh Ali Lansana reads from his collection They Shall Run: Harriet Tubman Poems. Need a transcript of this episode? Request a transcript here.

Pilsen was a diverse neighborhood in Chicago long before anybody used the word “diversity.” Stuart Dybek and Ana Castillo read poems inspired by their childhoods there. Need a transcript of this episode? Request a transcript here.

Marc Smith conceived the worldwide phenomenon of slam poetry at the Green Mill in the 1980s. Audience participation encouraged. Need a transcript of this episode? Request a transcript here.

The neighborhood of Bucktown is home to Danny's Tavern and Myopic Books, two hot spots in the local poetry scene. Srikanth Reddy and Peter O'Leary read.

The Newberry Library is an independent research library, and has twice served as the home for Poetry magazine during its prestigious and often surprising past. Need a transcript of this episode? Request a transcript here.

Li-Young Lee grew up in this immigrant neighborhood, and his poem "The Cleaving" depicts his struggles with identity, violence, and universality.

This tour stop includes poetry addressed to graves in Chicago's ritzy Graceland Cemetery. Carl Sandburg, Vachel Lindsay, and Harriet Monroe meditate on mortality and what should, or should not, be memorialized. Need a transcript of this episode? Request a transcript here.