Meet Shaniqua - Croydon’s First Poet Laureate

Photo copyright of Chetna Kapacee

Hi everyone, I’m Shaniqua Benjamin, Croydon’s first ever Poet Laureate. Weird to say, right? 
Well, I still find it weird, because I’ll always be little Shaniqua from Thornton Heath.

Photo copyright of Philip Waterman

This post is all about giving you the chance to meet me and get some insight on what being Croydon Poet Laureate is all about.  The first question you’re probably asking is: What’s a Poet Laureate anyway?  And in all honesty, I’m not fully sure how to even answer that myself, so let’s break it down.

According to The Poetry Society, “A poet laureate is a poet appointed by a government or organisation, who may be asked to compose poems by that appointing body.”  Simple right?  I was appointed (honestly, I hate that word, so let’s say chosen) as Poet Laureate by Croydon Council and formally announced in October 2020 (I know, that was months ago, but at least you’re meeting me now).

Why would Croydon Council choose little Shaniqua from Thornton Heath?  I’m glad you asked; I also asked myself this question a number of times, to which my sister replied, “Why not you?”  Well, it’s because:

·        I’d been commissioned to write and perform a number of poems for them in the past for different occasions

·        I had provided a platform for young people to share their poetry through my (now past) monthly poetry night Poetic Insight

·        I love my home of Croydon, I know my home of Croydon and I am active in the Croydon community.

 
I am also passionate about my art form and amplifying the voices of others, which is why I didn’t want this laureateship to just be about composing poems – I love people and seeing them realise their potential.  As Croydon’s Poet Laureate, my aims are to promote poetry in Croydon and beyond, make poetry more accessible and amplify the voices of others, especially those who may come under the labels of marginalised, forgotten or ignored (I also hate labels and just prefer to see people as people, which we’ll get to another time).

If you know me or get to know me, you’ll see that I want to empower others and eradicate all levels of injustice (I think big).  I believe poetry can play a part in doing that, as can any art form, as art creates change and speaks to your soul.  Art also brings people together, which is important, increasingly more so in our current climate.

I hope to empower, inform, inspire and bring people together through my time as Croydon Poet Laureate, which began with my first residency in collaboration with Museum of Croydon to highlight young ‘Voices of Croydon’ for an exhibition that will be live on this same site.  You can find all the information there, so I won’t bore you with it twice.

However, I cannot go on this journey alone.  I need you to engage with me – I’m warm, friendly and will always greet you with a smile.  And if you want some poetry in your life, I’m open to working with groups, organisations, platforms, charities, businesses, you name it in Croydon; and beyond.  I just want to share the art form I love with you and give you the chance to see it’s not as difficult or boring as you may think (I understand your preconceptions, I hated poetry at school).

So now you’ve met me, it would be great to meet some of you in the comments, or on Twitter, or Instagram… Oh yeah, and check out my first commissioned poem as Croydon Poet Laureate, ‘Come Together’ – I hope you like it.

Croydon Poet Laureate
Shaniqua Benjamin