There was standing room only in the African American Cultural Center on Friday night at the Sankofa Poets Poetry Slam.
In a dimly lit room complete with African decor, about 10 poets shared their poems on love, slavery and racism.
The Sankofa Poets is a student organization composed of black students who get together and share their poetry with others.
“Sankofa is a West African word meaning that we must go back and understand our past so we can know where we’re going today,” said Samori Camara, graduate student who created the Sankofa Poets in October 2001.
“It was a good crowd; people were responsive,” Camara said. “It’s about people who have a strong love for the spoken word, and those who want to impact society.”
Alicia Calvin, English senior, is also a member of the Sankofa poets.
Calvin said the poets usually have regular meetings and a set schedule, but because of hurricanes and the Confederate flag protests last semester, Friday was one of the first times they were able to come together this year.
“It’s all about telling stories about things that matter like education and war,” Calvin said. “The spoken word is us; it’s our culture.”
Along with the Sankofa poets, the slam was also an open-mic night.
David Kador, computer engineering freshman, read a poem he wrote about growing up and becoming a college student.
“I heard about [the poetry slam] through Samori, and he helped me loosen up,” Kador said. “I’m a shy person, so doing things like this gradually helped me become more expressive.”
Many University students said they attended the slam to support their friends and classmates.
“There are some people who are shy about releasing their poetry in public, so we come to support them and let them know we’re interested,” said Jamaal Hollis, biology freshman.
Members of the Baton Rouge Poetry Alliance participated with University students.
The BRPA is a group that competes nationally with other poetry groups and is “one of the best,” Camara said.
Camara said he is hoping to participate in the Regional College Poetry Slam in Houston at the end of the month.
The poetry slam was the first of a series of events celebrating Black History Month on campus.
“This is the kick-off event for our Black History Month programs, and to see the turnout tonight is very exciting,” said Daine Appleberry, business sophomore and black history committee chairperson.
“Everybody should support black history events because it affects everyone,” Camara said.
 
Contact Elizabeth Miller at [email protected]