Berkeley High's Nadia Elbgal Named Oakland Youth Poet Laureate

BERKELEY, CA — Ditching the safe road came with some risks, and now Nadia Elbgal is reaping the rewards.

Elbgal had enjoyed writing since she was in fourth grade, but the Berkeley High School student credits a freshman drama teacher with helping her find her own voice, and an East Bay city has taken notice.

The Oakland Public Library on Saturday announced that Elbgal was named Oakland’s 2022 Youth Poet Laureate, and was awarded a $5,000 scholarhip.

Mayor Libby Schaaf announced the award at the Lake Merritt Amphitheater after all seven finalists performed.

The announcement was first reported by Berkeleyside.

Elbgal said her freshman drama teacher encouraged her to learn more about the world and not to shy away from expressing her views during an interview with Oakland’s 2020 YPL Greer Nakadegawa-Lee that was posted on YouTube before she was announced as the winner.

“He was always pushing us to write monologues, and to write about things that go on in the world that are more connected to us just so we can feel more connected to our monologues and be able to express it with a lot of passion,” Elbgal said.

“That really helped me to be able to write about what was going on in the world. Before that I was very much on the safe side. I wanted to write about things that could be accepted by everybody but didn’t start any problems.”

“Once I started doing more research into the issues of the world, I really wanted to get my opinion heard and get my values shared … I didn’t really care about pleasing everybody anymore, I just wanted to speak my truth.”

Elbgal said she's drawn to politics and aims to give voice to the voiceless victims of the atrocities of the war in Yemen and Israel's occupation of the Palestinian people, among others, in her work.

She credits a fourth-grade teacher with inspiring her interest in writing, telling Nakadegawa-Lee that although she never finished the fiction works she started, the process contributed to her development.

Elbgal was a finalist last year, and served as a 2021 vice laureate.

“It was such a big deal for me,” she told Nakadegawa-Lee in the interview, which was conducted before this year’s winner was announced.

“It’s something I talk about every chance I get, I was very proud of myself. it still is an incredible feeling.”