Born from a poetry workshop in a LA County juvenile probation camp, Street Poets has evolved over the past 25 years into a multidimensional, highly collaborative arts education organization harnessing the healing power of poetry, music and ritual to save lives, create community and transform culture. Street Poets’ outreach has extended from prison cells to public school classrooms, from inner-city projects to Indian reservations, from L.A. street corners to countries worldwide.

Our mission:Street Poets harnesses the healing power of poetry and music to save lives, create community and transform culture. Street Poets breaks the cycle of violence in the lives of at-risk and incarcerated youth, awakening them to their gifts. Street Poets builds creative community, bringing youth, adults and elders of diverse backgrounds into deep transformational relationship. Street Poets consults and collaborates with other organizations and communities to inspire both individual and systemic change.