Poetry

Willie Carver Wants To 'Poke The Bear' With His Book, Gay Poems For Red States

Willie Carver was Kentucky’s teacher of the year in 2021. Carver is openly gay. And not everybody was OK with a gay high school teacher. Carver said he — and his LGBTQ students — faced homophobia and were frequently harassed. And so in 2022, he resigned from the high school. Last summer, he released "Gay Poems for Red States."

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Brasstown Carvers, Willie Carver And Cabbagetown, Inside Appalachia

This week on Inside Appalachia, for nearly a century, some of the best wood carvers in Appalachia have trained at a folk school in North Carolina. The Brasstown Carvers still welcome newcomers to come learn the craft. Also, in 2021, Willie Carver was named Kentucky’s Teacher of the Year. Then he left his job over homophobia and became an activist and celebrated poet.

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New Book ‘Gay Poems For Red States’ And Amy Ray Band Has Our Song Of The Week, This West Virginia Morning

On this West Virginia Morning, Willie Carver was Kentucky’s teacher of the year in 2021, but as a gay man, he and some of his students were harassed. So, in 2022, he resigned from Montgomery County High School. Last summer, he released Gay Poems for Red States. The book earned praise and helped turn Carver into a much-followed, outspoken voice on social media. Bill Lynch caught up with Carver.

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Tazewell, Virginia Family Keeps Black Poetry Alive For Today’s Generation

For nearly 100 years, Jeanette Wilson’s family has used poetry to share stories of African American life in southwest Virginia. Now those poems are reaching a wider community – and a new generation.

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