Dear Rupert,
Thanks for your message here. Just wondered if you'd managed to read my earlier response, and whether you've had a chance to find out anything more about what we've tried to do with Shake the Dust? I think it's useful to discuss the pros and cons of the youth slam model, but I also think it's important to appreciate that:
a) there are a number of poets who manage slam projects for young people (nationally and internationally) with an awareness of the potential issues around the competitive aspects of slam events.
b) "the points are not the point, the point is the poetry" is a well-known catchphrase in youth slam circles. Most (if not all) of the producers of youth slam projects I know celebrate this notion, and take pains to ensure that participation (and of course engaging with poetry) is valued more highly than competition.
c) I won't argue the fact that there are young people who may not be taken with the idea of a slam. By the same token, having attended most of the regional finals for Shake the Dust so far (not to mention the range of other youth slam events I've either attended or been involved with running over the years), I can confidently say that I'm aware of a large number of young people who credit their participation in a slam with changing their perception of poetry and the power of their own voices in positive ways.
All best wishes.
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