Lynne Thompson Announced As 2021 Los Angeles Poet Laureate
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Mayor Eric Garcetti Wednesday announced that native Angeleno Lynne Thompson is the 2021 Los Angeles Poet Laureate.
Garcetti described Thompson as an "acclaimed writer, an outspoken force who uses words to tell stories and unite communities and open us up to perspectives."
"A native of South L.A., in so much of her work, our city, its character, its dynamism, its challenges and its resilience, they play a leading role," he said.
Thompson received an artist fellowship from the city in 2015, and her published poetry collections include "Smart With A Small Guitar" and "Beg No Pardon," according to the Poetry Foundation.
Garcetti said Thompson's poem "Hammer and Pick" is about her father making it through the Great Depression.
"As we march forward towards recovery (from the coronavirus pandemic), I know that her poetry will help us set our sights on a brighter and better future, and Los Angeles, that future is within reach," he said.
(© Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)
