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The danger of silence - Clint Smith

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"We spend so much time listening to the things people are saying that we rarely pay attention to the things they don't," says poet and teacher Clint Smith. A short, powerful piece from the heart, about finding the courage to speak up against ignorance and injustice.

Additional Resources for you to Explore

Check out Clint Smith's poem, "Ode to the Only Black Kid in the Class", and his interview about the poem where he speaks of the circumstances that inspire him to write itand cautions from generalizing black literature as a monolith. The poem is part of TED-Ed's series, There's a Poem for That

Watch Smith's TED Talk, How to raise a black son in America, which digs into his experience as a kid playing with water guns in a dark parking lot with his white friends— and his father’s furious and fearful response.

Learn more about Smith's work, poetry, and reporting here


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