The speaker functions as a stand-in for the author, carrying the rhythmic cadence of spoken-word traditions. She observes the protests, tragedies, and heroics occurring across the United States during a politically divisive year. Believing deeply in the inclusive potential of the country, she acts as an oracle attempting to usher in a new, unified American lyric. She views everyday citizens as poets who write the nation's ongoing story through their actions.

He is the President of the United States whose controversial policies and rhetoric spark widespread progressive protests in 2017. His administration's actions, including the travel ban and the attempt to end DACA protections, serve as the catalyst for the resistance movements detailed throughout the text.

She is a single mother and a middle-school English teacher working in a windowless classroom in Watts, Los Angeles. She dedicates herself to empowering Black and brown students to spell out their thoughts. Her educational efforts and sacrifices directly enable her daughter to pursue writing and perform on national stages.

Rosa is an undocumented student and protester fighting for her right to remain safely in the United States. She participates in marches defending the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. The poem positions her resilient spirit as the essential foundation of her local community.

Jesus is a young paramedic and an undocumented Mexican immigrant protected under the DACA program. When Hurricane Harvey hits Houston, he works for six straight days to rescue victims from the rising floodwaters.

Heather is an activist and counter-protester who stands against a gathering of white nationalists at the Unite the Right rally. She loses her life when a terrorist deliberately drives a car into the crowd. She is remembered in the verses as a permanent, blooming presence in a meadow of resistance.

He is a participant in the white nationalist Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. He commits an act of terrorism by driving his car into a crowd of counter-protesters, causing fatal injuries.

She is the 22nd US Poet Laureate, taking on the role of Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress. Her inauguration ceremony serves as the specific occasion for the original presentation of this work.