Queer Voices Unleashed: Celebrating Today’s LGBTQ+ Poets!
By Mya Tran
Poetry is something that has always been very close to my heart. I’m a big believer in the idea that no one really hates poetry, you just haven’t found the right poet yet. Poetry is one of the many beautiful art forms to express thoughts and feelings. It’s no secret that some of the biggest writers in history were queer. Allen Ginsberg, Oscar Wilde, Walt Whitman, and who could forget Sappho? But who are some of today’s hottest queer poets? Here is a compiled list of the queer poets I’d found and loved that I think you should check out.
Ocean Vuong (he/him)
A very familiar name to those of us that are literary nerds, queer Vietnamese American icon Ocean Vuong is a stunning poet, essayist, and NYU professor. Most known for his novel On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, Vuong writes about the complex experience of being a queer immigrant. His poetry is thoughtful and deep, yet strikes a chord with all who read it. This is a poet for those of us with big feelings we feel others can’t understand, for those of us who are desperate trying to repair our relationships with our families, and for those of us battling grief.
Sam Sax (they/he)
Queer, jewish, writer and educator Sam Sax has taken the world by storm with their poetry. Unafraid to broach the tough topics, Sax is a bold and emotional poet. His collection Madness is unashamed when talking about the AIDs crisis, and is transparent when discussing mental health. This is a poet for people who want blunt honesty, for people who are figuring it out. The poem “On PrEP or on Prayer [“spare us your burial rites”]” is one of my favorite pieces, as its representation is queer anger and the longing for acceptance is so beautifully put.
Denice Frohman (she/her)
As a queer Nuyorican, Frohman is the daughter of Puerto Rican and Jewish parents. She uses her background and indentity as fuel for her writing, and has been featured in many anthologies, including one of my go-to’s, Nepantla: An Athology for Queer Poets of Color. Frohman has a special way of speaking directly to my heart, and I find her poetry raw and relatable. Her poetry is deep and meaningful and yet she speaks on issues that I think many struggle with. I really recommend her piece “once a marina biologist told me octopuses have three hearts”, as featured in the anthology I mentioned before. This is a writer for those who want to feel understood, and for those of us who struggle to fit in.
Hieu Minh Nguyen (he/him)
Also a Vietnemse-American poet, Ngyuen brings a younger voice to the diaspora than Vuong does. Awarded a Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship from the Poetry Foundation in 2018, Ngyuen is an up and coming name in the poetry community. I find that his author is really honest about the hardships in his life and it helps the audience understand and relate to the emotions he portrays in his writing. His poem “Changeling” has stayed with me for years, and I keep finding myself going back to it. This is a poet for those of us that struggle to find peace within ourselves and to find our place in the world.
I hope you check out these poets and some of their collections! Many of them have poetry readings available for free on YouTube and podcast streaming sites, as well as free published poems under the Poetry Foundation and other such websites. Happy reading!
About the Author:
Mya Tran is an incoming junior at Butler University, in Indianapolis, IN. They are currently studying English on the creative writing track and German. Growing up in a small college town with limited queer role models, Tran has spent her life with her nose in the books, looking for someone to relate to.
