WEBVTT

00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:00.870 align:middle line:90%
Hello, everybody.

00:00:00.870 --> 00:00:01.370 align:middle line:90%
Welcome.

00:00:01.370 --> 00:00:03.050 align:middle line:90%
How are you all?

00:00:03.050 --> 00:00:03.680 align:middle line:90%
Good work.

00:00:03.680 --> 00:00:05.780 align:middle line:90%
Happy Thursday!

00:00:05.780 --> 00:00:07.070 align:middle line:90%
We did it.

00:00:07.070 --> 00:00:08.790 align:middle line:90%
We're almost out of February.

00:00:08.790 --> 00:00:10.790 align:middle line:84%
There's just a little
bit more to go.

00:00:10.790 --> 00:00:12.320 align:middle line:84%
And that's what I want to
tell you about, especially.

00:00:12.320 --> 00:00:13.128 align:middle line:90%
My name is Tyler.

00:00:13.128 --> 00:00:15.170 align:middle line:84%
I work here as the Director
at the Poetry Center.

00:00:15.170 --> 00:00:17.462 align:middle line:84%
It's a thrill to have a crowd
here on a Thursday night.

00:00:17.462 --> 00:00:20.120 align:middle line:84%
As always, we're grateful
to you for choosing poetry

00:00:20.120 --> 00:00:22.560 align:middle line:84%
and bringing that
into your lives.

00:00:22.560 --> 00:00:24.830 align:middle line:84%
I want to tell you about a
couple of upcoming events

00:00:24.830 --> 00:00:26.960 align:middle line:84%
at the Poetry Center just
so you're aware of them.

00:00:26.960 --> 00:00:29.210 align:middle line:90%
Next Thursday, on the 29th--

00:00:29.210 --> 00:00:31.730 align:middle line:90%
so there is a 29th this year--

00:00:31.730 --> 00:00:34.100 align:middle line:84%
we have a reading from the
poet, Matthew Zapruder, who's

00:00:34.100 --> 00:00:38.000 align:middle line:84%
coming to read,
whose nonfiction book

00:00:38.000 --> 00:00:41.130 align:middle line:84%
is up for the National Book
Critics Circle Award right now.

00:00:41.130 --> 00:00:43.250 align:middle line:84%
So we're really excited
about that visit.

00:00:43.250 --> 00:00:43.827 align:middle line:90%
You can come.

00:00:43.827 --> 00:00:44.660 align:middle line:90%
It's a free reading.

00:00:44.660 --> 00:00:46.610 align:middle line:90%
It's back here, same space.

00:00:46.610 --> 00:00:49.280 align:middle line:84%
Thursday night, 7 o'clock
at the Poetry Center.

00:00:49.280 --> 00:00:52.940 align:middle line:84%
And then after that, we have
a visit from our fall poet

00:00:52.940 --> 00:00:55.700 align:middle line:84%
in residence, who
is John Murillo.

00:00:55.700 --> 00:00:58.040 align:middle line:84%
We're really excited
to have John here.

00:00:58.040 --> 00:01:00.080 align:middle line:90%
He'll be reading on March 14th.

00:01:00.080 --> 00:01:02.960 align:middle line:84%
And that's, again, back here at
the Poetry Center, 7 o'clock,

00:01:02.960 --> 00:01:03.650 align:middle line:90%
free reading.

00:01:03.650 --> 00:01:06.492 align:middle line:84%
And we hope you'll come and
visit and be with us for that.

00:01:06.492 --> 00:01:07.950 align:middle line:84%
If you're interested
in John's work

00:01:07.950 --> 00:01:10.117 align:middle line:84%
and maybe don't know it as
well as you might like to

00:01:10.117 --> 00:01:14.220 align:middle line:84%
or beginning to find it,
this Saturday on the 24th,

00:01:14.220 --> 00:01:15.810 align:middle line:84%
there's a conversation
about his work

00:01:15.810 --> 00:01:18.450 align:middle line:84%
that our docents are going to
lead here at the Poetry Center

00:01:18.450 --> 00:01:19.470 align:middle line:90%
at 1 o'clock.

00:01:19.470 --> 00:01:22.290 align:middle line:84%
It's drop-in style book
club, except the best

00:01:22.290 --> 00:01:25.480 align:middle line:84%
part is, you don't have to
have read it in advance.

00:01:25.480 --> 00:01:26.460 align:middle line:90%
You just come.

00:01:26.460 --> 00:01:29.010 align:middle line:84%
There'll be a packet of
poems that will be discussed.

00:01:29.010 --> 00:01:30.718 align:middle line:84%
And they'll be talking
about and thinking

00:01:30.718 --> 00:01:32.730 align:middle line:84%
about John's work and
some of his interests

00:01:32.730 --> 00:01:34.360 align:middle line:90%
and some of his influences.

00:01:34.360 --> 00:01:39.120 align:middle line:84%
So that's 1 o'clock here, this
Saturday at the Poetry Center.

00:01:39.120 --> 00:01:41.090 align:middle line:90%
Please join us.

00:01:41.090 --> 00:01:44.990 align:middle line:84%
We are thrilled tonight to be
celebrating a lot of things,

00:01:44.990 --> 00:01:49.480 align:middle line:84%
including the 20th
anniversary of Letras Latinas.

00:01:49.480 --> 00:01:51.010 align:middle line:84%
And so, this is a
national program,

00:01:51.010 --> 00:01:52.510 align:middle line:84%
if you're not
familiar with it, that

00:01:52.510 --> 00:01:56.680 align:middle line:84%
has done tremendous work
advocating for presenting,

00:01:56.680 --> 00:01:59.260 align:middle line:84%
archiving, working
in partnership

00:01:59.260 --> 00:02:01.600 align:middle line:84%
with other organizations,
and bringing forward

00:02:01.600 --> 00:02:05.810 align:middle line:84%
a sort of the wide expanse of
Latinx letters in this country,

00:02:05.810 --> 00:02:10.389 align:middle line:84%
and in doing so, has
widened the aperture for how

00:02:10.389 --> 00:02:13.940 align:middle line:84%
people expect what that might
be, how Latinx letter shows up.

00:02:13.940 --> 00:02:16.870 align:middle line:84%
And so, they've brought
an incredible array

00:02:16.870 --> 00:02:20.740 align:middle line:84%
of energy, new resources,
archival practices,

00:02:20.740 --> 00:02:24.880 align:middle line:84%
programmatic partnerships, and
especially, visibility in a way

00:02:24.880 --> 00:02:30.010 align:middle line:84%
that has been a tremendous
intervention in the status quo.

00:02:30.010 --> 00:02:33.520 align:middle line:84%
Letras Latinas was founded at
the University of Notre Dame.

00:02:33.520 --> 00:02:37.930 align:middle line:84%
And the energizing force for
Letras Latinas for the past two

00:02:37.930 --> 00:02:41.030 align:middle line:84%
decades has been
Francisco Aragón, a poet

00:02:41.030 --> 00:02:43.820 align:middle line:90%
and administrator and a friend.

00:02:43.820 --> 00:02:46.430 align:middle line:84%
Francisco is not here
tonight, but I know

00:02:46.430 --> 00:02:47.990 align:middle line:90%
that he's on the live stream.

00:02:47.990 --> 00:02:49.520 align:middle line:84%
And it would mean
a great deal to me

00:02:49.520 --> 00:02:51.710 align:middle line:84%
if we could just do a
big round of applause

00:02:51.710 --> 00:02:59.215 align:middle line:84%
for Francisco's work,
which we celebrate

00:02:59.215 --> 00:03:01.090 align:middle line:84%
and which we're grateful
to be in partnership

00:03:01.090 --> 00:03:05.490 align:middle line:84%
with in a lot of different
ways at the Poetry Center.

00:03:05.490 --> 00:03:08.740 align:middle line:84%
There's also some birthdays
that have happened recently.

00:03:08.740 --> 00:03:12.440 align:middle line:84%
So Sheila turned 21
on the plane here.

00:03:12.440 --> 00:03:14.430 align:middle line:90%
No, sorry, not 21.

00:03:14.430 --> 00:03:15.990 align:middle line:90%
But you can imagine.

00:03:15.990 --> 00:03:17.790 align:middle line:90%
It was the 21st of February.

00:03:17.790 --> 00:03:19.390 align:middle line:90%
She turned 21.

00:03:19.390 --> 00:03:21.760 align:middle line:90%
So we're excited about that.

00:03:21.760 --> 00:03:23.790 align:middle line:84%
And it's Alexis'
birthday tonight, so

00:03:23.790 --> 00:03:27.310 align:middle line:84%
lots of birthdays that we can
celebrate, including this one.

00:03:27.310 --> 00:03:30.420 align:middle line:84%
And I was-- and I grew
a little bit older, too.

00:03:30.420 --> 00:03:31.620 align:middle line:90%
It's happening.

00:03:31.620 --> 00:03:35.100 align:middle line:84%
You're surrounded by Pisces
whether you like it or not.

00:03:35.100 --> 00:03:35.850 align:middle line:90%
It's a lot.

00:03:35.850 --> 00:03:36.930 align:middle line:90%
We embrace you.

00:03:36.930 --> 00:03:39.420 align:middle line:90%
Let's go swimming.

00:03:39.420 --> 00:03:42.810 align:middle line:84%
It's my pleasure to welcome
up Letras Latinas' associate,

00:03:42.810 --> 00:03:44.935 align:middle line:84%
Laura Villareal, a great
friend and colleague

00:03:44.935 --> 00:03:45.810 align:middle line:90%
at the Poetry Center.

00:03:45.810 --> 00:03:47.850 align:middle line:84%
We've been connected
in a few different ways

00:03:47.850 --> 00:03:50.100 align:middle line:84%
over the last many years,
and we're grateful for that.

00:03:50.100 --> 00:03:52.392 align:middle line:84%
And Laura is going to come
up and introduce our readers

00:03:52.392 --> 00:03:54.420 align:middle line:84%
and talk a little bit
more about Letras Latinas.

00:03:54.420 --> 00:03:56.580 align:middle line:84%
Laura is the author
of the book a Girl's

00:03:56.580 --> 00:03:59.250 align:middle line:84%
Guide to Learning, which
won the Robert A.--

00:03:59.250 --> 00:04:01.050 align:middle line:84%
I'm sorry, the John
A. Robert Johnson

00:04:01.050 --> 00:04:03.150 align:middle line:84%
Award from the University
of Wisconsin Press.

00:04:03.150 --> 00:04:04.200 align:middle line:90%
Tremendous book.

00:04:04.200 --> 00:04:08.140 align:middle line:84%
Please help me welcome
Laura Villareal.

00:04:08.140 --> 00:04:09.900 align:middle line:90%
Thank you.

00:04:09.900 --> 00:04:11.000 align:middle line:90%