Hispanic Heritage Month

September 15, 2022

AWP observes September 15 through October 15 as Hispanic Heritage Month and recognizes all communities of Hispanic and Latino heritage. We strive to make space for and give a platform to writers who identify within these communities. Our goal is to celebrate and uplift Hispanic and Latino authors who share their stories throughout local, national, and global cultural communities.

In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, we have assembled a collection of events, resources, and a Bookshop.org list comprised of Hispanic and Latino authors.

From The Writer’s Chronicle

Ten Must-Read Latino Books by Michael Dowdy, September 2017

Within Two Cultures, With Two Languages: An Interview with Margarita Engle by Padma Venkatraman, November 2019

The Cosmic Poetry of Octavio Paz by Pablo Medina, February 2009

Tropic of Tropes: A Conversation with Poet & Art Critic Ricardo Pau-Llosa by Bruce Allen Dick, February 2009

Elegy for Desire: Luis Omar Salinas 1937-2008 by Christopher Buckley, October/November 2008

On Poetry, Politics, & Publishing: A Conversation with Martin Espada by Bruce Allen Dick & Andres Fisher, September 2008

An Interview with the Founders of CantoMundo by Millicent Borges Accardi, May/Summer 2016

An Interview with Judith Ortiz Cofer by Stephanie Gordon, October/November 1997

Rewatch Online Events

#AWP21 Latin American Women Writers in Translation

#AWP21 Creative Writing in Spanish in the United States: A Movement in the Making

General Resources:

To find out more about Hispanic Heritage Month and its origins: https://www.hispanicheritagemonth.gov

Explore VOCES, an arts and culture documentary showcase produced by Latino Public Broadcasting. VOCES is the only ongoing national television series devoted solely to celebrating and documenting the rich diversity of the Hispanic and Latino cultural experience.

The PALABRA Archive

With representation from 32 countries, the Library of Congress’ PALABRA Archive dates to 1943 and contains over 800 recordings of Latino and Hispanic poets.

Browse through a subset of the PALABRA Archive that features recorded interviews of American poetry and prose writers of Hispanic descent.

The podcast series La Biblioteca, produced by the Library of Congress’ Hispanic Reading Room, explores the Library of Congress’ collections that focus on Spanish, Latin American, Portuguese, and Hispanic communities. Listen to conversations between curators, librarians, critics, poets, and experts as they convene to discuss selections from the PALABRA Archive.  

Hispanic Heritage Month Events:

All times are listed in ET.

Thursday, September 15

4:00–5:00 p.m.— Honor Hispanic Heritage Month by attending Reaching for the Stars with José Hernández, author and NASA space engineer. Learn about José’s journey from migrant field worker in Southern California to flying in space. This event offers free registration and will take place online.

Sunday, September 18

7:00–8:30 p.m.— MetroWest presents MetroWest READ: Reading for Equity, Accountability, and Diversity. Attendees of the September 18 meeting should come prepared to discuss Finding Latinx: In Search of the Voices Redefining Latino Identity by Paola Ramos, Mexican Gothic by Silvio Moreno-Garcia, and When We Make It by Elisabet Velazquez. This event offers free registration and will take place online.

Wednesday, September 21

7:30—9 p.m.— Celebrate with family of all ages! DreamBank’s event  Book Club for Kids: Hispanic Heritage Month Edition features authors e.E. Charlton-Trujilo and Pat Zietlow Miller and their new co-written children’s book Lupe Lopez: Rock Star Rules! This event is best for children ages three through seven. This event offers free registration and will take place online.

Tuesday, September 27

1:00 p.m.— Instituto Cervantes Manchester and Leeds Poetry’s Club will be hosting a reading of poet Luis Cernuda’s work. Cernuda, exiled after the Spanish Civil War, lived in the United Kingdom until later, moving to the United States and Mexico. Explore how Cernuda’s poetry mirrored mid-1900s global cultural and literary sentiments. This event offers free registration and will take place online.

Thursday, October 6

12:00­­–1:00 p.m.— Oakland Community College presents Cultural Insights & Understanding: Hispanic/Latino/Latina/Latinx. Join a panel of subject experts as they explore the differences between the terms “Hispanic” and “Latino” and why some people prefer one over another. This event will take place online and offers free registration.

Tuesday, October 11

6:00–7:15 p.m.— Join the third annual forum on Critical Latinx Indigeneities featuring Gloria Chacon, Odi Gonzales Jimenez and Alan Pelaez; moderated by Simón Trujillo. Hear from scholars whose research pushes the boundaries of Latinx, Latin American, Indigenous, and Black studies to provide comprehensive analyses of our cultural and political climate. Registration is free, and this event will take place online.

Wednesday, October 19

5:00–6:30 p.m.— The Latinx Project presents Latinx in Publishing, a panel discussion featuring Latinx editors Nadxieli Nieto, Daniel Vazquez, and Elizabeth Méndez Berry, moderated by Nèstor David Pastor. Registration is free, and this event will take place online.

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