Building upon the amazing impact the Omari Hardwick bluapple Poetry Network has had on area youth since launching the program in 2013, football legend Jason Taylor and his Jason Taylor Foundation are now taking bluapple to new heights by bringing the “Super Bowl of Poetry” to Broward County! The 2014-15 school year marked the launch of Louder Than a Bomb Florida (LTABFLA), empowering and uniting S
outh Florida’s youth and community through the art of the spoken word! Beginning in September of 2014, teachers and students from schools as far south as Homestead and as far north as Port St. Lucie, often times with the assistance of a bluapple Teaching Artist, began working, learning, creating and sharing within their classrooms, in after-school clubs and through various teen open mics throughout South Florida, developing safe spaces for individual and collective expression on their respective campuses and in their communities. The culmination of this work manifested in the 2nd Annual Louder Than A Bomb Florida, a 12-day festival last April, which was highlighted by a friendly competition taking place in dynamic venues throughout Broward County. A diverse group of students, parents, administrators and community members representing nearly 40 schools participated in LTABFLA, creating authentic narratives to reimagine the self and one another while developing mutual respect and tolerance for difference. To see the full impact of what this groundbreaking program had on South Florida in just its first year,
The bluapple Poetry Network is gearing up for the 2016-17 Louder Than A Bomb Florida with full expectation of being markedly bigger and better. The third-year festival will run from March 27th through April 8th, 2017 and again will feature a wide array of schools from South Florida and beyond, with unique exposure to some of the finest facilities in Broward County.
