There’s power in the written word.
Twin brothers Al Mills and Nnamdi Chukwuocha of Wilmington are on a mission to get young people to use that power to cope with trauma and start the process of healing.
The 50-year-old Wilmington siblings were named Delaware’s Poets Laureate in 2015 by then-Gov. Jack Markell. This week, their work was celebrated at Delaware State University’s Art and Activism virtual seminar as part of the school’s commemoration of Black History Month.
“There is no greater joy to the Twin Poets than to see children smile, and listen to short stories, and poems, and just enjoy being children,” Chukwuocha said. “That’s who we were as children, and having that reminder, when you look at children, about how art touched us, and how we are hoping that it continues to touch the lives of our future generations, is just a beautiful feeling.”
With a more than 50% increase in shooting incidents in Wilmington last year, more young people are experiencing the trauma of gunfire in their neighborhoods.
“Our goal has always been to try to take children away from the trauma and hurt, and to give them poetry and creative writing as a tool,” Chukwuocha said.