CPL board member Lorna Dee Cervantes accepts El Machete Award!
On October 7, 2024, Lorna Dee Cervantes, renowned poet and board member of the Cascadia Poetics Lab, was invited to the El Machete Speaker Series at San José State University. Here are Lorna’s statements on the event:
I’m so proud and honored to be accepting the El Machete Award, named after SJSU alum, Luís “El Machete” Valdez—someone who has had an enormous influence on my life. I started out in drama, acting. Luís’s student, Adrian Vargas was teaching a Chicano Teatro class at SJCC where I was a reluctant student. He invited our teatro, Teatro Conciente, to the TENAZ Festival which held events throughout Mexico. I returned to graduate with honors from SJSU. I would testify that not only was it that “poetry saved my life”, it wouldn’t have happened without Chicana/Chicano Studies—made possible by students like Luís Valdez, and MEChA (who recruited me in high school) who fought for the right.
In the after reading Q & A someone asked: “What are you doing now and how can we support you?” It was the perfect segue to say I had joined the B of D of CPL… and that it was another way to think about borders, to erase the idea of borders, and instead think of in terms of watersheds and bioregions. Like El Río Grande… How we all share a common water just as we share breath in poetry (inspiration: to take in breath and Spirit; we share a common breath when we share each others poetry outloud.) I announced the next CPF & invited everyone in Seattle or near there to come… And that the CPF was Nov 1-3, ‘Días de Muertos, so what else could I do but organize a Floricanto on Sat evening, Nov. 2., and you’re all invited.’ That got a BIG laugh.
As mentioned in her statement, Lorna will be hosting a Floricanto Cascadia at the 8th Cascadia Poetry Festival, Nov. 1-3, 2024! For more information on the festival, click HERE!
Congratulations to you, Lorna! MECha was an important part of my partner’s life as well. So good to hear the news. : )