Writer and performance poet Dean Atta worked with young people and teachers during the project, and has generously contributed some of his writing for presentation on this website to accompany the resources he has written for teachers. For more information about Dean see his website here.
How to Love Yourself
How to Love Yourself by Dean Atta Write your own list and only take from this the things that work for you. Yoga. Running. Walking. Meditation. A good night’s sleep. Drinking plenty of water. Comfort food. Quality time. Turning off your phone. Cinema trips alone. Forgiveness. Do not make a list of your...
Freedom of Love
Freedom of Love by Dean Atta My mother who swallowed her tongue My mother who gave me life My mother who spoils me My mother who let me stay rent-free My mother who texts me on her lunch break To see if I’ll be home for dinner My mother is a giver My mother has...
Young, Black and Gay
Young, Black and Gay by Dean Atta My people are many and few Subdivisions of me and you Substantial people sometimes called subhuman Negroes, faggots and all the youts dem Don’t think your rights came overnight So many people had to fight To gain anything like equality We ain’t there yet but we’re gonna...
I Come From
I Come From by Dean Atta I come from shepherd’s pie and Sunday roast, jerk chicken and stuffed vine leaves. I come from travelling through my taste buds but loving where I live. I come from a home that some would call broken. I come from D.I.Y. that never got done. I come...
Inside My Archive
Inside My Archive, March-December 2017 by Dean Atta December 2017, Gay Times magazine, Boy George on the cover, four of my Black Flamingo poems inside on a double page spread. June 2017, The Black Flamingo zine of poetry and art, made for Tate Britain, April 2017, Boyz magazine, photos of my drag graduation inside....