The Poetry Room and the Capital Area District Library have combined to create the Latino Project. The theme will be “Places we call home”. Hosted by Tari Muniz, the event will feature local poets Cruz Villarreal and Guillermo Delgado. Featured guest will be Karla Cordero (Her Bio is at end of the article). The 90 minute program will be held at the CADL Downtown Branch located at 419 S. Capitol Ave. Lansing, Michigan 48933.
• English: “This program is presented as part of Latino Poetry: Places We Call Home, a major public humanities initiative taking place across the nation in 2024 and 2025, directed by Library of America and funded with generous support from the National Endowment for the Humanities and Emerson Collective.”
• Español: “Latino Poetry: Places We Call Home (Lugares que llamamos hogar) es una gran iniciativa pública en el campo de las humanidades, que se proyecta para el 2024 – 2025. Es dirigida por Library of América con el generoso apoyo del Fondo Nacional para las Humanidades y Emerson Collective.”
For nearly five centuries, the rich tapestry of Latino poetry has been woven from a wealth of languages and cultures. With distinctive rhythms, lyricism, and candor, and nuanced understandings of place, history, and origin, Latino poets have brought dazzling insight to what it means to make a home in America.
Recognition of the beauty and power of this tradition has grown in recent years, with Latino poets receiving two national and twelve state Poet Laureateships, two Pulitzer Prizes, and three National Book Awards. At the same time, the perennial questions confronted by Latino poets—of exile and belonging, language and identity, struggle and solidarity, and labor and landscape—have become ever more urgent.
What does Latino poetry reveal about America? How might it help us imagine a more just, joyful, and capacious future? Places We Call Home seeks to foster nationwide conversation on this vital literature through a groundbreaking new anthology edited by Rigoberto González, events around the country, an online media archive, and a wealth of library resources meant to spur in-depth reflection and discussion on key figures and themes.
Funded with generous support from the National Endowment for the Humanities and Emerson Collective, Places We Call Home is directed by Library of America and presented in partnership with the National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures; the Academy of American Poets; Cave Canem; Poetry Society of America; and the National Book Foundation, among others.
Desde hace cinco siglos, una gran variedad de lenguas y culturas se vienen entretejiendo para formar ese colorido tapiz que es la poesía latina en Estados Unidos. Los poetas latinos nos han permitido ver a Estados Unidos como un hogar a través de originales ritmos, gran lirismo y candor; nos han brindado sugerentes visiones de lo que llamamos “lugar,” “historia” y “origen.”
En años recientes, la poesía latina viene adquiriendo el reconocimiento que se merece por su belleza y su añeja tradición. Evidencia de ello es el hecho de que varios poetas latinos han sido merecedores de dos galardones a nivel nacional y doce a nivel estatal, dos premios Pulitzer y tres Premios Nacionales del Libro. Asimismo, las preguntas existenciales y los retos sociales que enfrentan estos poetas— el exilio y la pertenencia, el lenguaje y la identidad, la lucha y la solidaridad, la labor y la tierra—se vuelven cada vez más urgentes.
¿Qué nos revela la poesía latina sobre los Estados Unidos ? ¿De qué manera nos ayuda a imaginar un futuro más justo, jubiloso, y esperanzador ? Latino Poetry: Places We Call Home (Lugares que llamamos hogar) busca fomentar una conversación de impacto nacional sobre la poesía latina a través de una nueva antología sin precedentes, eventos por todo el país, un archivo multimedia, y una gran cantidad de recursos bibliotecarios destinados a inspirar discusiones e interpretaciones de fondo sobre figuras y temas imprescindibles.
Places We Call Home es un proyecto financiado por el Fondo Nacional para las Humanidades y Emerson Collective, dirigido por Library of America. Es presentado en colaboración con the National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures; the Academy of American Poets; Cave Canem; Poetry Society of America; y the National Book Foundation entre otras organizaciones
About Library of America
• English: Library of America is a nonprofit organization that champions our nation’s cultural heritage by publishing America’s greatest writing in authoritative new editions and providing resources for readers to explore this rich, living legacy.
• Español: Library of America es una organización no lucrativa que se dedica a enaltecer el legado cultural norteamericano a través de la publicación de obras imprescindibles en ediciones autorizadas. También procura apoyo y recursos al público lector con el fin de mantener y enriquecer la vida de esta gran herencia.
Karla Cordero is a descendant of the Chichimeca peoples of northern Mexico, a Chicana poet, educator and author of the poetry collection, How To Pull Apart The Earth (Not A Cult.) a 2019 San Diego Book Award winner and awarding-winning finalist for the International Latino Book Award and the International Book Award. Her work has appeared on NPR, Academy of American Poets, O-Oprah Magazine, Split This Rock, PANK, The Breakbeat Poets Vol. 4 LatiNext Anthology, among other publications. Karla is a recipient of the 2021 California Arts Fellowship, in addition, she is a Macondo, VONA, CantoMundo, Tin House, Pink Door Writing Retreat, Community of Writers Fellow. Karla is the Executive Director for the non-program Glassless Minds and a professor in composition and creative writing at MiraCosta College and San Diego City College. Follow her @karlaflaka13
The Poetry Room website: The Poetry Room – Lansing, Michigan’s Premier Poetry Open Mic
Karla Cordero website: Karla Cordero – Poet. Artist. Educator
Funding provided from:
Library of America, Latino Poetry Fund, City of Lansing, Arts Council of Greater Lansing
