Luis Omar Salinas
Encyclopedia
Luis Omar Salinas was a leading Chicano
poet who published a number of well-received collections of poetry, including the Crazy Gypsy, which has been described as "a classic of contemporary and Chicano poetry"), I Go Dreaming Serenades, and Afternoon of The Unreal. He was awarded the Stanley Kunitz
award by Columbia Magazine for one of his poems, and a General Electric Foundation Award. Salinas is regarded as "one of the founding fathers of Chicano poetry
in America," with many of his poems being "canonized in U.S. Hispanic literature."
, Salinas' father, Rosendo Valdez Salinas, was a second generation Mexicano-Tejano. Salinas was raised under poor circumstances in Robstown until, as a teenager, he moved with his family to California.
After graduating from Bakersfield High School
, he served in the United States Marines Reserve
s and attended Bakersfield City College, where he earned an Associate of Arts degree in History. He then studied under Henri Coulette
at California State University at Los Angeles before transferring to California State University Fresno.
Salinas dropped out of college and supported his writing through most of his life by doing various jobs. Toward the end of his life he returned to California State University Fresno, where he taught poetry.
in America." While a student at California State University Fresno Salinas published his first book, Crazy Gypsy, which sold well and earned him a reputation as both "a Chicano poet and as one of the leaders of the 'Fresno School' of poets, which included Gary Soto, Ernesto Trejo, Leonard Adame and others." The book served as an "anthem for Chicano activists," with many of the poems being reprinted in Chicano poetry anthologies and being "canonized in U.S. Hispanic literature."
Fellow Chicano poet Gary Soto
wrote of Salinas that he "possesses a powerful imagination, a sensitivity toward the world, and an intuitive feel for handling language."
with Sandra Cisneros
.
Chicano
The terms "Chicano" and "Chicana" are used in reference to U.S. citizens of Mexican descent. However, those terms have a wide range of meanings in various parts of the world. The term began to be widely used during the Chicano Movement, mainly among Mexican Americans, especially in the movement's...
poet who published a number of well-received collections of poetry, including the Crazy Gypsy, which has been described as "a classic of contemporary and Chicano poetry"), I Go Dreaming Serenades, and Afternoon of The Unreal. He was awarded the Stanley Kunitz
Stanley Kunitz
Stanley Jasspon Kunitz was an American poet. He was appointed Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress twice, first in 1974 and then again in 2000.-Biography:...
award by Columbia Magazine for one of his poems, and a General Electric Foundation Award. Salinas is regarded as "one of the founding fathers of Chicano poetry
Chicano poetry
Chicano poetry is a branch of American literature written by and primarily about Mexican Americans and the Mexican-American way of life in society. The term "Chicano" is a political and cultural term of identity specifically identifying people of Mexican descent who are born in the United States...
in America," with many of his poems being "canonized in U.S. Hispanic literature."
Life
Born on June 24, 1937 in Robstown, TexasRobstown, Texas
Robstown is a city in Nueces County, Texas, United States, and a western suburb of Corpus Christi. It was founded about 1906, and was named for Robert Driscoll Jr., a landowner...
, Salinas' father, Rosendo Valdez Salinas, was a second generation Mexicano-Tejano. Salinas was raised under poor circumstances in Robstown until, as a teenager, he moved with his family to California.
After graduating from Bakersfield High School
Bakersfield High School
]Bakersfield High School is a high school located in Bakersfield, California, USA.Institutional names and dates of operation:*Kern County High School 1893-1915*Kern County Union High School 1915-1945*Bakersfield High School 1945–present...
, he served in the United States Marines Reserve
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
s and attended Bakersfield City College, where he earned an Associate of Arts degree in History. He then studied under Henri Coulette
Henri Coulette
Henri Coulette was an American poet and educator. His first book, The War of the Secret Agents and Other Poems , was greeted with acclaim and won the Lamont Poetry Prize...
at California State University at Los Angeles before transferring to California State University Fresno.
Salinas dropped out of college and supported his writing through most of his life by doing various jobs. Toward the end of his life he returned to California State University Fresno, where he taught poetry.
Poetry
Salinas is regarded as "one of the founding fathers of Chicano poetryChicano poetry
Chicano poetry is a branch of American literature written by and primarily about Mexican Americans and the Mexican-American way of life in society. The term "Chicano" is a political and cultural term of identity specifically identifying people of Mexican descent who are born in the United States...
in America." While a student at California State University Fresno Salinas published his first book, Crazy Gypsy, which sold well and earned him a reputation as both "a Chicano poet and as one of the leaders of the 'Fresno School' of poets, which included Gary Soto, Ernesto Trejo, Leonard Adame and others." The book served as an "anthem for Chicano activists," with many of the poems being reprinted in Chicano poetry anthologies and being "canonized in U.S. Hispanic literature."
Fellow Chicano poet Gary Soto
Gary Soto
Gary Soto is a Mexican-American author and poet.Mexican-American parents Manuel and Angie Soto . In his youth, he worked in the fields of the San Joaquin Valley and in factories in Fresno. Gary's father died in 1957, when he was just five years old...
wrote of Salinas that he "possesses a powerful imagination, a sensitivity toward the world, and an intuitive feel for handling language."
Awards
Salinas has won the Earl Lyon Award for poetry writing from Fresno State University (1980), and the Stanley Kunitz award from Columbia Magazine at Columbia University for his poem "Letter Too Late To Vallejo" (1982). In 1984, he received an award from the General Electric Foundation, and in 1985 he was invited to read his poetry at the Library of CongressLibrary of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
with Sandra Cisneros
Sandra Cisneros
Sandra Cisneros is an American writer best known for her acclaimed first novel The House on Mango Street and her subsequent short story collection Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories...
.
External links
- Luis Omar Salinas on the HyperTexts Literary Journal