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Filipino American student activist Malaya Ulan has been named the 2024-2025 Philadelphia Youth Poet Laureate.

The 16-year-old junior at the Science Leadership Academy at Beeber received the prestigious recognition from the Free Library of Philadelphia. The youth poet laureate is selected each year by a committee composed of teachers, poets and cultural organization professionals. 

As the new Philadelphia youth poet laureate, she has earned a scholarship and mentorship from the city’s adult poet laureate Kai Davis. Davis and Ulan will serve as poetry ambassadors at community events in Philadelphia.

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During the announcement last Sept.18, she showcased her Filipino heritage by wearing a Filipiniana terno.

Philadelphia’s new Youth Poet Laureate, Malaya Ulan, a 16-year-old junior at Science Leadership Academy at Beeber, brings a diverse artistic background in poetry, dance, film, and painting. https://t.co/p4ojyBOZjW

— PHILADELPHIA.Today (@PHILLYToday_) September 23, 2024

You may also like: WATCH: 15-year-old Fil-Am prodigy making her mark in cancer research

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Davis described Ulan as “fiercely dedicated to justice but also tender, empathetic, and compassionate.” 

As an artist and activist, she uses her talents across multiple platforms including dance, poetry and filmmaking to connect with her Filipino roots and amplify important issues, such as cultural identities and gun violence.

She has performed at the Barnes Foundation, Asian Arts Initiative and Painted Bride, and she recently appeared in the Philadelphia Fringe Festival production, “Special Topics.”

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Ulan’s journey in the art scene began as her way of coping with adversity. When she was bullied in elementary school, she channeled her emotions through poetry.

“Poetry became kind of a safe space for me to articulate how I felt, to share why this was impacting me, and as a form of therapy, basically,” Ulan told KYW Newsradio. “I realized, I really love this form and that it’s something important to me.”

Born to an artist mom, Anito Gavino, Ulan has become a creative force and social activist. She was part of a youth panel for the Fourth Review Conference on the Program of Action on Small Arms and Light Weapons, where she discussed the impact of gun violence on Philadelphia’s youth. 

 She posted photos and videos on Instagram, writing, “Gun violence in Philadelphia has become so normalized amongst our youth…I feel that there is so much work to be done to prevent further lives from being lost.”

With Ulan’s artistic talents, she has garnered multiple awards from Mighty Writers and won the Gold Key in the Scholastic Art and Writing Competition, to name a few. Her name, Malaya Ulan, means freedom and rain – both unstoppable forces of nature that reflect her unwavering commitment to using the power of words to ignite change.

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