Anna Martinez Has Nothing Nice to Say
Anna Martinez made it plain in the first poem she read after being named Albuquerque’s new poet laureate — “Take nice and shove it.”
Martinez has lived her life speaking out, speaking her truth and speaking to defend the truths of others. Now that she is the city's poet, she has no plans to change. Not two months into her tenure she is already getting hate mail. Imagine a poet getting hate mail about her words. Those must be some extraordinarily powerful words.
Albuquerque’s New Poet Laureate
Forgoing fumata bianca, the Albuquerque Poet Laureate Program Selection Committee with Mayor Keller’s approval announced Albuquerque’s sixth poet laureate, Anna C. Martinez, during a ceremony this evening at the Albuquerque Museum. Speaking of the city’s poet laureate program, Mayor Keller said, “What a beautiful reflection of the city it is.” Martinez is set to represent the city in all things poetic for a two-year term starting July 1. Her first book of poetry, Pura Puta, A Poetic Memoir, is out now from Casa Urraca Press.
Thoughts on Stormclouds Like Unkept Promises
I dislike songs without definitive endings. When the recording just sort of fades out and the engineer turns the volume to zero. Am I to assume the band played on? Did I lose conciseness? You know that they don’t do that kind of thing when they are playing live so why can’t they just write an ending so you know when the piece is over? The poet Margaret Randell doesn’t play her poems that way. Randell’s poems end strong.