I really enjoyed this poem. The presentation of serious topics was beautifully done and I like the different way you chose to describe these topics. In the first topic of discussion, I liked how you didn’t just say, “people in third-world countries” but instead wrote it as, “Like life available to a select few that/ Readily comes out of taps around here.” I also like how the repetition changes by the time the repeated phrase is used at the end. I felt like the speaker is referring to the “real” conversation at the end of the poem, which seems so menial (to the speaker) as opposed to the must more important issues out there, worth discussing.
A few suggestions, beginning with the title. Awkward gives a connotation of topics that are wanted to be avoided, but are not very important. This is opposite of what you are conveying with these conversation topics so I feel like the title/”Awkward” should be changed to something with a little more power and energy. In the stanza about abortion, the repetition of “coat hanger” seems a bit unnecessary. This was also the stanza that I struggled with the most, so maybe changing one of the “coat hanger” lines to allude to abortion will help your poem contextually. Also, consider varying the different ways to present/write the similes and metaphors instead of saying “like” and “as…as” every time. I love the repetition of the over-arching question, but with the metaphors also repeating in form sits on the verge of too much repetition.
Overall, I think you have done a great job in writing a poem that has gravitas and is also enjoyable to read. I felt real emotions reading your poem and I thought it was beautifully written.