STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: ANIYA BUTLER
We met Aniya Butler in 2017, when she was 10 years old.
She enrolled in a poetry workshop in partnership with House/Full of Blackwomen. The workshop culminated in a book and an evening of performances by local Black women healers, makers, dreamers, and leaders.
Aniya fit right in. She was already a strong writer and had a clear vision.
Soon after, she and her mom approached us about helping her finish a collection of poetry she had already started. The following year we published This World is Going to Change.
“Aniya has been deep her whole life. That is why I reached out to Chapter 510. Because I knew they were deep and would support her growth.”
In 2022, Aniya received the Award in Environmental Humanities from the University of Utah, the Senator Regis F. Groff Youth Award by the National Black Caucus of State Legislators, and most recently was chosen as one of Seventeen Magazine’s 2022 Voices of the Year.
Now Aniya is 16 and back at our writing center, not as a student, but as a leader. As part of her work with Youth Vs. Apocalypse, she is running a monthly climate justice writing workshop and open mic for youth ages 10-19 at Chapter 510.
Youth are now following her lead to write for a livable climate and a just world.
We are so honored to be a part of Aniya’s journey, and to continue to support her work and be witness to her growth as a powerful truth-teller and change-maker.
Congratulations, Aniya, on all you’ve done and will surely do!
