Brenda Cardenas a former professor at Wright College, former Milwaukee’s poet laureate, and now current associate English professor at University of Wisconsin came back to recite poems in honor of Wilbur Wright College’s Hispanic Heritage Month.
The poems recited included “At the Base of the Blues Tree: Una Ofrenda for Jimmy Davis”, “Chicago Blues Man”, “Lecciónes de Lengua”, “Abuelo y Sus Cuentos: Origin of the Bird-Beak Mole”, “Zacuanppalots”, and among other poems.
When writing her poems, Cardenas intertwines English and Spanish displaying both her cultural background and living in the U.S.
Growing up, Cardenas did not feel reflected in literature that she came across, which is what inspired her to write in both languages.
Cardenas later found several Hispanic authors, which further led her to write her own poetry. Cardenas draws inspiration from several forms of art including visual, theatrical, and musical. Cardenas stated, “…Artwork and poems are in conversation”. Some of Cardenas work like “Abuelo and Sus Cuentos: Origin of the Bird-Beak Mole” is based on her experience growing up in a bilingual household, why she wrote in mixed languages, and this one in particular, was based on the times speaking with her grandfather.
Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month, Wright offered a contest competition essay contests themed “Mirror, Monsters, and Identity”. The writing topic consisted of Wright students revealing their own experience when being denied “any reflection in them”.
(Photo by Caitlin Cabanas)
Daniel Borzutuzky, a Professor at Wright, made these events happen. He commentated that "Hispanic Heritage Month is a time where we honor and share the rich histories, traditions, cultural, political and artistic contributions of Latinx peoples both in the US and Latin America. We have an enormous number of Latina, Latino and Latinx students at Wright College (which is officially designated a Hispanic Serving Institution), and we know that students greatly benefit and feel respected when they see the way in which people who come from similar backgrounds to their own are celebrated for their successes and innovations. The histories, struggles and successes of Latinx peoples in the US are largely ignored by schools, the media and political discourse. Hispanic Heritage month attempts to make these histories and narratives visible by asserting the importance and necessity of understanding the incredibly diverse range of backgrounds and experiences encapsulated in the terms Latin American and Latinx. It’s important that all of our students, including recent immigrants and undocumented students, know that they are welcomed, respected and valued both at our main campus and at Humboldt Park. Hopefully, Hispanic Heritage Month reinforces this welcoming invitation. Students can become involved by becoming a part of LASO (Latin American Student Organization); or by contacting some of the staff, faculty and administrators who have helped to organize the great events throughout the month, including Kenneth Santiago and Aasha Francis."
(Latinx is a current term used to promote inclusivity to women and the LGBTQ+ community)
Prizes included gift certificates for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place. The deadline for the essay contest was October 5th.