Feature Story: The Pitch

Because Burlington, Vermont is so much less urban, both by definition and in culture, than other major cities around the country, its slam poetry culture is also very unique. Therefore, by extension, slam poems by Burlington- and other Vermont-based poets have mixed success on national stages because of their limited experience with poverty, gang violence, and other politically-charged issues that tend to appeal to the judges in large events. For this story I'll be looking into whether this was a factor in the decline of Burlington's slam community, and whether local poets are capable of succeeding on a national level without relying on stories of personal tragedy or political agendas. I plan to attempt to speak to national poets Buddy Wakefield and Taylor Mali (and potentially others), as well as Vermont slam poet Geof Hewitt.