The U.S. Poetry Establishment Is Finally Becoming Diverse – And Audiences Are Responding

“Skim the table of contents of the major literary journals, … and even general-interest weeklies with vast reach such as The New Yorker and The New York Times Magazine. Scan the recipients of the prestigious and sometimes lucrative fellowships, awards, and lectureships … The face of poetry in the United States looks very different today than it did even a decade ago, and far more like the demographics of Millennial America. … These outsiders find themselves, at the very start of their careers, on the inside — and not just of a hermetic realm of poetry … At literary festivals, many of these poets are drawing big crowds.”