City of Alexandria Honors Outgoing Poet Laureate Zeina Azzam
Azzam called her appointment 'a beautiful journey for me and one of the great honors of my lifetime.'
ALEXANDRIA, VA – The City of Alexandria officially recognized outgoing Poet Laureate Zeina Azzam during a City Council meeting on April 22, issuing a proclamation to celebrate her impactful three-year term. Azzam, appointed in 2022, made history as the first Arab American to hold that title, which was established in 2006 to promote poetry and the literary arts in the community.
In alignment with National Poetry Month—designated every April since 1996 by the Academy of American Poets—the proclamation highlighted Azzam’s extensive contributions to the city’s cultural and civic life through poetry.
During her tenure, Azzam penned 23 original poems for a wide range of community events and city initiatives, including the Alexandria Birthday Celebration, Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Community Program, and the 10th Anniversary of the Contrabands and Freedmen Cemetery Memorial. Her words also marked solemn remembrances such as memorials for lynching victims Joseph McCoy and Benjamin Thomas, the September 11 Remembrance Ceremony, and the Soil Collection Ceremony.
Beyond her written work, Azzam was deeply involved in community engagement. She led five themed writing workshops, judged youth poetry contests in middle schools, facilitated a poetry workshop for immigrants at the Alexandria Detention Center, and brought poetry into Alexandria High School’s International Academy. She also created two signature annual events: a city-wide Haiku Contest with an edited publication of entries, and the “Multicultural Poetry Reading: Poems About the Moon.”
Azzam’s efforts extended beyond Alexandria, as she appeared as a featured reader at venues both locally and across the country. During her time as laureate, she published her poetry collection Some Things Never Leave You, with several poems—including two Pushcart Prize nominees—appearing in national literary journals.
Mayor Alyia Gaskins, speaking on behalf of the Alexandria City Council, acknowledged her contributions and thanked her on behalf of the citizens of Alexandria. After joking about the length of the proclamation, Mayor Gaskins noted that, “…every piece of this [proclamation] is important and every piece deserves to be celebrated.” Her official term concludes on April 30, 2025.
Zeina Azzam joins a distinguished group of past Poets Laureate, including Mary McElveen, Amy Young, Tori Lane Kovarik, Ryan Wojanowski, Wendi R. Kaplan, and KaNikki Jakarta.
As her final days in the role approach, Azzam’s legacy as Poet Laureate stands as a testament to poetry’s enduring power to connect, inspire, and heal.
Azzam thanked city council for welcoming her as the “…poet laurate, writer, as a woman, as an older woman, as an Arab American, as a Palestinian American, as a daughter of refugees, as an immigrant, and so much more.”
She also thanked the Office of Historic Alexandria for involving her in its many events and recognized the staff of the city Office of the Arts, calling them her “touchstone.”
In her soft, strong voice she reflected on her past three years as the city’s poet laureate as “a beautiful journey for me and one of the great honors of my lifetime.”
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