Heart of Glass

Heart of Glass

“If I’ve seen further, it’s because I’ve stood on the shoulders of giants.” -Isaac Newton

I’d like to take this time to publicly address an issue that recently occurred at Poetic Underground KC’s open mic at Blip Roasters. On this particular night, Sara Glass arrived to read at the open mic and was then told that she couldn’t read at the open mic due to the list being full. Now, ordinarily this would be O.K., as standard operating procedure at an open mic is to have a list of who is reading, and then for that list to close when all spots are filled. However, you should know that Sara Glass is actually the founder of Poetic Underground KC, which she created more than a decade ago.

Likewise, the effect of this decision is that you’re telling Sara that she can’t read at the open mic that she created. There’s an additional level of irony here, as this decision by this person to silence Sara is only possible because of Sara’s creation of the open mic where she’s being denied at.

I’d like to also add that the person who made this decision was also a woman. We are constantly hearing about men silencing women, but when was the last time we heard about a woman silencing another woman? I think we all know that this happens more than we’d like to admit, and it’s particularly difficult to witness a woman silencing another woman, as women have been historically marginalized in our society, so in a way you’re silencing yourself. This also goes against the very premise of an open mic, which is to expand people’s voices, not to exclude them, especially due to a rule in which in this circumstance, an exception to that rule is warranted.

Likewise, I was deeply troubled witnessing this event. It was also something that hit me particularly hard, as I am also a former founder and co-founder of a number of things. Your response to your founder should be, “When would you like to read?” and not, “The list is full.” Someone deserves exceptional treatment when their impact on your organization and the greater community has been exceptional.

To deny that person this privilege, is to state that this person is no more important than anyone else walking in off the street. Is this a just way to treat this person? The absurdity of this situation sounds like a scene out of an episode of Broad City or Silicon Valley, although this is not a TV show—this is real life.

Imagine a situation where Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft, wanted to give a speech at Microsoft, only for Microsoft staff to then tell Bill Gates, “Sorry Bill, we are unable to accommodate this request at this time, as our speaking engagement calendar is full.”

Bill Gates is also a person who has saved countless lives battling malaria around the world, and is who also someone who is in part responsible for nearly wiping out Polio. You would think a person of this stature would be allowed to speak at the organization that they were in part responsible for creating.

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After Sara was told that she couldn’t read at her own open mic, Sara’s response was simply, “O.K.” and then she walked out. Despite having every reason to be there, I think Sara didn’t want to create a scene, so she instead just left. This is the type of person Sara is.

I was very close to saying something at this point. I even thought about giving my spot to Sara. I should have said something then, and for that, I apologize for not doing so. That decision is solely on me, although this is why I decided to address this issue here.

I’m also addressing it now, because recognition is important. Recognition says that your contributions are important, and that we need to let other people know about it as a result of this. Likewise, when we don’t recognize people, we’re sending the message that their contributions are not important.

That’s not to say that those who have come after us are not also important. After all, no one disputes Elon Musk’s significant impact on Tesla, or Ray Kroc’s stamp on building McDonald’s into the international powerhouse that it is today. However, we still need to give credit to those who have come before us, because without these people, those who came after us would not be here. Without Martin Eberhard and Mark Tarpenning, there would be no Tesla, and without the McDonald Brothers, there would be no McDonald’s. How often do we here about these people though?

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Sara and I go way back. I actually met Sara at Shawnee Mission South high school. We were also both contributors to our school’s literary magazine. On the cover of one of the year’s literary magazines, there’s a man jumping in the air. The theme for that year was Movement, Interrupted.

Above: Our High School's Literay Magazine from 2002-2003, of which Sara and myself were both a part of

If you look closely at the photograph, you’ll see it was taken at the Overlook at Quality Hill. This is a park located in Kansas City’s Quality Hill neighborhood. This location is important, because the stone precipice of the park overlooks The West Bottoms, which is the current location of Poetic Underground KC at Blip Roasters. This is the same open mic Sara would create nearly ten years after the photograph was taken. The fact that Poetic Underground KC has been hosted at a multitude of venues over the years makes the photograph even more chilling, as this photograph has predicted its current location.

I’m proud to say that I shared those pages with Sara long ago, and I’d like to recognize her for her contributions to Kansas City’s open mic scene. It’s hard to measure the extent of Sara’s impact, but in a word, I would describe it as massive. The fact that the open mic that she founded is still going nearly 15 years later, is a testament to the strength of Sara’s original concept, as well as the substantial need to have third places in our community. You can even make the case that Afterword’s open mic would not exist without Sara Glass, as it is a direct descendant of Poetic Underground KC. One of the main purposes of art is to inspire others, and Sara should be commended for this inspiration.

Above: "Green Eyes" by Sara Glass from our High School Literary Magazine. I also had a few pieces featured here.

There have also been so many moving moments at Poetic Underground KC that’s hard to remember them all. I’ll never forget the night a trans woman read a piece about her parent’s refusal to accept her identity. She ended the piece by stating that despite being nearly thirty years old, that she felt that she had only been alive for one year.

On another night, a woman read about her struggle with suicide. She had a few poems to share about her experiences, and it was difficult for her to read them. She barely made it through them, with her voice shaking and her eyes watering. She ended her set and then received a standing ovation. It was a beautiful and powerful moment about the power of resilience.

Another night, in what I can only describe as the darkest piece I’ve ever witnessed, a young woman took the stage and read a long piece about years of being sexually abused. She told the story is reverse chronological order, which only amplified the impact of the piece. It was shocking, heartbreaking, and horrific. It was a story about a loss of innocence, exploitation, and the destruction of another person. It was really hard to listen to, but it was amazing that this person was able to publicly share this piece. The piece ends with her being first raped around at the age of six.

The applause that followed her piece was less than expected, and she seemed disappointed as she sat down. However, the tragedy of the moment is that there’s nothing anyone could of said to make this situation better. That night was unforgettable.

The only reason I know about any of these stories is because of Sara Glass. Sara has given a voice to so many people who otherwise wouldn’t have one. The other part of this story is about the importance of having a physical space for people to connect over, as third places are inherently physical. This is increasingly important as we have lost many of these places over the years, and we now need them more than ever, as community is best built in person.

If you see Sara Glass around Kansas City, tell her thanks for her contributions to Kansas City’s open mic community. Sara deserves this recognition because of the countless lives she’s impacted.

The reason we’re here is because of the people we meet and the stories we tell. Likewise, anything that expands the ability to do that is a worthy pursuit. I also hope that the Poetic Underground KC organization never turns away their founder ever again, because even if the list is full, for Sara, there should always be a spot available for her.