Original Writing My writing as a poet has been heavily influenced by writers like Langston Hughes, Nikki Giovanni, Alice Walker, and slam poets like Black Thought and The Last Poets. These writers write and speak about the struggles and uniqueness of black culture. Their individual experiences and political positions, as well as the influences of other artists, are evident in their work. For example, in Giovanni's poem “Revolutionary Music,” she quotes lyrics by Sam Cooke and James Brown to illustrate her personal views on racism and equal rights movements. Hughes in his piece titled "Message to the President" skillfully incorporates the political events of his time into his poetry, using them to sardonically articulate his view on the racial inequalities that were occurring in his time. Black Thought and the Last Poets use jazz and urban hip hop along with their idea of ​​Blackness to convey their message. In writing my individual poems, I find it difficult not to incorporate the style of the writers mentioned. I have gained awareness of Black culture and wrestled through the words of these writers, whose ideas have no choice but to be reflected in my writing. I wrote a piece called “Books, Not Bombs” that originated around the time that troops were being sent to Iraq to fight a war that in my opinion was unnecessary. Students from my high school and city schools walked out of class to protest at city hall; however, we were told that if we left we would be suspended by the principal. I felt like the administration was silencing our voices by holding us back with the threat of suspension. In this poem I used a line from a local pop song by the group OutKast, "They're dropping bombs on Baghdad, but what about the bombs that are exploding right here, right now..." The use of this mimics the incorporation of Giovanni and Hughes of musical lyrics of the era to make the piece recognizable to the intended audience. I was also influenced by the political-social climate that was much debated in that period (the war). My particular social influence reflects Robert P. Yagelski's essay “Who's Afraid of Subjectivity.” In his essay he used Donald Murray's experience in writing and rewriting his piece which reflected his war years and the political controversies of his time. “…which provided the impetus for writing the poem and aided and abetted in shaping the very content of the poem.