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By Any Media Necessary: Mapping Youth and Participatory Politics

Daniel Beaty - Knock, Knock on Def Jam Poetry

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1. KONY 2012
4. "FA$T CA$H: Easy Credit & the Economic Crash" - (Music Video by Dorian Electra)
8. Revolution in Egypt: A 4-Minute Introduction
9. Capitol Hill Day with The Can Kicks Back
10. #BYP100 Responds to George Zimmerman Verdict
12. Iraq Veterans Against the War
13. To All My DREAMheads
14. I'm in Love with Friedrich Hayek by Dorian Electra ( Official Music Video)
18. Why We Rise
24. Part 1 DC DREAM Act National Graduation
25. Books on FIRE
27. "Fear the Boom and Bust" a Hayek vs. Keynes Rap Anthem
30. UC Davis Pepper Spray Incident, Four Perspectives
31. Why I Can't Go to LeakyCon
32. North Korea: Explained
33. Coming out of the Shadows - Dream Activist Philadelphia
34. Why Does Congress Suck?
36. Liberty in North Korea: Rescue Campaign
37. Supply & Demand Rap: WE GOT IT 4 CHEAP by Dorian Electra ( Official Music Video ) Uploaded on Dec 12, 2011 This song was created to enter the Supply and Demand Video Contest sponsored by Fayetteville State University's Hackley Endowment. We are students at Shimer College and Northwestern University. Made by: Dorian Electra & Neil Lokken Music by: Matt Kawahara Special Thanks: Lynn Hong, Bryan Maddox, Robin Babb, Allison Savage, Allon Libermann, Rachel Davison. LYRICS: Yo. We got it 4 cheap And we're tryin to be supplyin So we got to compete. OH. And we try to understand The laws we all cant help but follow called: SUPPLY AND DEMAND If I'm sellin somethin Here's what I got to know To ensure my sales be bumpin If we raise the price, fewer people be buyin If we push that price down low, customers be multiplyin It's not to simple just to sell it for cheap You got to cover your costs Ya tryna make ends meet Say we were forced to keep our price way down. LOW Our goods become more scarce become the talk of the town. OH If the law won't let us respond in turn by raising our money PRICE Then our lovely customers will have to pay the price in non- monetary costs such as waitin in line On day when you could be HUSTLIN and now you wastin yo time So when the prices are fixed costs remain, don't fall for tricks That extra cost don't disappear It just shift from here to here You got dem long long lines? Wait a sec, shorty, that ain't right UHM. SHORTY DAT LOOK LIKE A SHORTAGE SHORTY, SHORTY DAT LOOK LIKE A SHORTAGE Ooo. When dat price so low So they be rushin to da store tramplin one another to DA FLOOR uh Ya get it? It's about supply and demand. Ya get it? Yyeeaaaaaaaaahhhhh Yes sir, sir yes, what about a surplus? Yes sir, sir yes, what about a surplus? When you got leftover GOODS on your HANDS Cos the quantity supplied exceeds the quantity demanded Yo. We got it 4 cheap And we're tryin to be supplyin So we got to compete. OH And we try to understand The laws we all cant help but follow called: SUPPLY AND DEMAND
38. Understand the Sequester (Spoiler: It's Bananas.)
40. InterOccupy, Occupy Sandy Meeting 11-18-12 (raw footage)
43. Statement and poem by Kathy Jetnil-Kijiner, Climate Summit 2014 - Opening Ceremony
45. Orphans vs. Empires: Andrew Slack at TEDxYouth@SanDiego
46. A Quick Guide to Understanding Immigration Reform
47. The Case Against Gun Background Checks
48. No Justice No Peace: California's Battle Against Police Brutality & Racist Violence
50. Cathy Cohen, Ph.D., Challenges Voter ID Laws
51. Target Ain't People
52. Black And Yellow - AnCap Remix
53. The Can Kicks Back
54. West Wing Weak: Your Guide to Obama's Scandal-Filled Week
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Poetry
Poetry is a powerful and playful medium for storytelling. It's been developed since ancient Sumerian, Chinese, and Greek times. Today there are a number of different genres that permeate youth and popular culture. One particularly dominant form is the use of "Slam Poetry" amongst activist and literacy organization.

Poetry, and "Slam Poetry" in particular, are useful tools for developing public speaking skills, complex story structure techniques, and metaphorical uses of language. Poetic genres are often defined by structural rules with a range of rigidity, Haiku being a classic example. These rules help define creative constraints in which writers learn to play against or develop.

The element of live performance in poetry offers another visceral dimension in which poets can play. Daniel Beaty's "Knock Knock" illustrates the nuanced, emotional intensity that can be reached with a short-form, repetitive poetic structure. In Beaty's piece, he uses a single phrase "knock knock" as a thematic cue that runs throughout and develops from his personal story of his father's incarceration to an inspirational rallying of disenfranchised Black Americans. Beaty has sinced moved on to develop programs to teach youth how to harness poetry to overcome painful circumstances and empower themselves.

Amongst the organizations analyzed, such as Youth Speak and their Brave New Voices project, slam poetry has become a cornerstone for empowering youth and developing their literacy skills. One common use of their poetic storytelling is to share personal experiences that are creatively frame by larger themes and systematic issues, such as gender, racial, and economic inequality.