The University of Notre Dame鈥檚 (ILS) and will present a poetry reading and discussion on Wednesday (April 10) at 4:30 p.m., featuring Ada Lim贸n, the U.S. Poet Laureate; Carmen Gim茅nez, executive director and publisher of Graywolf Press; and poet and scholar heidi andrea restrepo rhodes, who uses they/them pronouns and styles their name with all lowercase letters.
The event, which takes place in the Reyes Family Board Room in McKenna Hall, is free and open to the public. It will be moderated by Laura Villareal, a poet and Letras Latinas associate. A reception and book signing will follow at 6 p.m.
The discussion is part of a yearlong celebration of the 20th anniversary of 鈥� a literary initiative within ILS that strives to enhance the visibility, appreciation and study of Latino literature on and off campus.
鈥淭hroughout the life of the institute, there have been initiatives that have come and gone. But Letras Latinas is the longest standing and is still here 20 years later,鈥� said , founder and director of the initiative. 鈥淚鈥檓 really proud of our longevity and I think this program has burnished the institute鈥檚 reputation both within the Latino literary community and nationally.鈥�
The Letras Latinas initiative, which emphasizes programs that support newer voices, has also helped forge connections between the three poets, Arag贸n said. Lim贸n and Gim茅nez have each served as a final judge for two national poetry prizes administered by the initiative. Lim贸n selected the winner of the Andres Montoya Poetry Prize in 2018, and Gim茅nez chose the winner of the Lorca Latinx Poetry Prize in 2022.
鈥淏oth Ada and Carmen, years apart and independent of each other, selected heidi as the winner of those two prizes,鈥� he said. 鈥淪o, on April 10, they will both be reading with the same emerging poet they selected, which makes this roster very special.鈥�
In addition to the public event, Lim贸n, Gim茅nez and rhodes will spend time visiting with undergraduate and graduate creative writing and poetry classes while on campus.
鈥淚t is a really meaningful experience when our students get to interact with writers they鈥檝e been studying in their classes,鈥� Arag贸n said. 鈥淧art of the mission of Letras Latins is to not only enhance the education of our students, but to create situations where writers are in community with each other. So, I鈥檓 particularly excited that these three poets will be able to spend this time here, forming bonds with each other and connecting with our students.鈥�
Lim贸n is the author of six books of poetry, including 鈥淭he Carrying,鈥� which won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry. As the 24th Poet Laureate of The United States, her signature project, 鈥淵ou Are Here,鈥� focuses on how poetry can help connect us to the natural world. Gim茅nez is the author of numerous poetry collections, including 鈥淢ilk and Filth,鈥� a finalist for the NBCC Award in Poetry, and 鈥淏e Recorder,鈥� which was a finalist for the 2019 National Book Award in Poetry, the PEN Open Book Award, the Audre Lorde Award for Lesbian Poetry and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. She is publisher and executive director of Graywolf Press. A poet, scholar, educator and cultural worker, rhodes won the 2018 Andr茅s Montoya Poetry Prize for their poetry collection, 鈥淭he Inheritance of Haunting.鈥� They are a 2023 recipient of the Creative Capital Award, a VONA alum, and have received fellowships from Zoeglossia, CantoMundo, Radar, and Yale鈥檚 Center for the Study of Race, Indigeneity, and Transnational Migration.
The event is the fourth in a series of nine events in 2024 commemorating the initiative鈥檚 20th anniversary, featuring a total of more than 20 poets. Following the series, Arag贸n and Villareal will guest edit a folio of the poets鈥� work, which will be published in the December 2024 issue of Poetry Magazine.