In 2018, the poem 'Denim' by Christine Kitano was published in the Portland Review. The poem tells the story of the poet's mother, a young immigrant who worked for minimum wage at a Denny's restaurant, serving coffee to men in blue denim. This poem uses denim as a symbol of the working class and the immigrant experience in America.

Christine Kitano's poem 'Denim' exemplifies how contemporary poets have used denim as a symbol to explore themes of labor, immigration, and the American Dream. The poem connects the fabric to the lived experiences of working-class people, echoing the social realism of earlier poets like Carl Sandburg. Kitano's work also highlights the role of denim in the immigrant narrative, a theme that has been explored by other poets of Asian American literature.