In five poems: What poverty means in 2018
Five poets in their twenties have written poems on poverty with the support of arts organisation Young Identity. These are their poems along with their honest views and experiences of what the word ‘poverty’ means in 2018.
"Poverty is something we should be talking about."
Bakes and Corn Beef: A poem by Toreh O'Garro
Poems on poverty: Toreh O'Garro reads his poem Bakes and Corn Beef.
Toreh, 21 says: “I’m at University, if I didn't budget and didn't stick to it, if I went wild and crazy like a typical uni student I know it' s not going to work out.
“My family is from Montserrat and my mum always said rice, flour and oil as long as you have those essentials, you’re not poor.”
"There’s stigmas attached to the way that you speak”
The Lack of Her: A poem by Jardel Rodrigues
Poems on poverty: Jardel Rodrigues reads his poem The Lack of Her.
Jardel, 20, says: “People judge you because of your dialect, maybe you come from lower down on the ladder, you’re more inclined to get a security guard following you round a shop if you don't have a shirt.
“I've always had a stable home but a lot of people are coming from broken homes.”
Warning: This clip contains some drugs references.
"Mostly I'm incredibly grateful for what I do have"
[Untitled]: A poem by Billie Meredith
Poems on poverty: Billie Meredith reads her poem on the theme of poverty.
Billie, 22 says: "I’m a designer and poet, if I want someone to listen to me or commission me I have to look presentable, so I look presentable but it can be a choice between flicking the heating on and getting a loaf of bread.
"Sometimes, I do sit at home and I'm miserable because I'd like to have more but past that but mostly I'm incredibly grateful to have what I do have."
"If I lost my job I could still go home"
What is Money?: A poem by Saf Elesenossi
Poems on poverty: Saf Elesenossi reads his poem What is Money?
Saf, 21, says: "We lived in Kenya for a while, and we had a nice home. When we moved to England we moved from a bigger house to a one bedroom apartment, from then on we have always lived on the breadline.
Winter was always an issue, it was always ‘how are we going to pay for the gas’."
"It's frowned on to talk about it"
Monster: A poem by Manni Dennisur
Poems on poverty: Manni Dennisur reads his poem Monster.
Manni says: "You feel you're ashamed of the living situation you're in but when you open up and speak about it, you realise you’re not alone and you're actually grateful for the things that you have.
"It’s still deep rooted in me that I don’t want to ask my mum for money, if anything my mum hands me money at random moments because she knows I’m not going to ask for it because I’m aware of the living situation at home."
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Afternoon Edition
On day two of our poverty week, Sarah and Nihal host a poetry slam on low wages and insecure jobs.
