WEBVTT

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"Fénicas."

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Fénicas, in Spanish,
just means Phoenix.

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And many people of Latin
descent, of course,

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in this country, will
Latinize or Hispanicize

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the name of the
town they live in.

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Like globe, they'll
say Global, right?

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And Phoenix, Fénicas.

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And this is a poem
in which I try

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to capture some of the
problem, the cultural problem,

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of the younger
Mexican-American, breaking away

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from his own culture and
not yet completely accepted

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by the Anglo culture.

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"Now the girls are driving home.

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Their thin breasts are resting,
loose balls of feathers

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against transparent ribs.

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They hardly grip the wheel.

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The roads out of town
whip and then straighten.

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Along curbs, palm trees
wilt, lash at the sunset,

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then yawn tired lines.

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Past churches where
the virgin laughs,

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points to her orient nipples.

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Past houses where bald
husband dash furniture

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against the walls.

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Behind them, the TV sets are
coming on in the barrios.

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They pass farmers trudging
home behind their teams.

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The red sun pools
on corn leaves.

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Poinsettias bloom
in their navels.

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Their breasts writhe
against the windshield.

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By the seats of
their pants, they

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feel the sunset roar,
the whoredom of Malinche.

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And, swinging into the
drive, the ravenous chickens

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rush out to meet them.

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