American poet Amanda Gorman reads her commissioned poem “The Hill We Climb” during the 59th Presidential Inauguration at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan. 20, 2021.
(AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, Pool, File)
By Morgan Lee
ASSOCIATED PRESS
A rhyming tribute to victims of the Los Angeles wildfires by poet Amanda Gorman has helped raise more than $110,000 in aid as of Tuesday.
The Los Angeles native says she penned “Smoldering Dawn” to process her own fears and prayers in a recital that was viewed more than 212,000 times in one social media post on X since Friday. A companion online fundraiser is tied to the California Fire Foundation.
The poem opens with, “All of our angels have gone. In this smoldering dawn we soldier on, we’ve proved ourselves strong.”
The 26-year-old former national youth poet laureate says she’s fortunate to be safe after her own home held up with some damage as wildfire raced through Pacific Palisades.
Gorman gained national attention with her poetry performance at the 2021 inauguration of President Joe Biden.
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