Grisel Acosta & Vincent Toro
GRITO: A Performance of Creative Writing
Apr. 7, 2:00pm, Library Law Classroom (NL-314)
Dr. Grisel Y. Acosta and Professor Vincent T. Toro both examine the effects of imperialism, colonization, globalization, and neoliberal practices on people of color in the Americas and throughout the world, in their creative works. Primarily working in poetry, the two writers and educators highlight the alienating effects of purposeful stratification and segregation of peoples, especially in terms of media imagery and the structure of our educational system, which often promotes White supremacy because it neglects to spotlight the societal contributions of people of color. Through their art, which has been performed internationally and translated into multiple languages, they reclaim the legacy of Latinidad and of the indigenous populations throughout North and South America and the Caribbean. Music also figures prominently in their works. In the case of Toro, there are homages to various musical artists and in the case of Acosta, she writes her own melodies and creates anthems to drive home the theme of empowerment. One should also note that there is abundant humor throughout their works and frequent references to hip-hop, punk music, cyberspace, mathematics/physics, various contemporary art movements, and urban culture, in general. Plan on a vivid and energetic performance!
Most classes will benefit from attending this event. Connections can be drawn to sociology, history, Latino/a studies and language studies (the event will be bilingual, in English and Spanish), media studies, anthropology, psychology, political science, gender studies, race studies, music, art, theater, and some of the STEM disciplines.
Dr. Grisel Y. Acosta is a writer from Chicago who is an assistant professor at Bronx Community College—City University of New York. Her creative work is in Nineteen Sixty Nine: An Ethnic Studies Journal, MiPoesias, Pembroke Magazine, Private International Photo Review, the NAACP Image Award nominated Check the Rhyme, Chicago’s After Hours Magazine, and the forthcoming Basta!: 100 Latinas Write on Violence Against Women and Love You Madly: Writers Respond to Jazz. Her scholarly work is in The Routledge Companion to Latino/a Literature, African American Women’s Language, The Handbook of Latinos and Education, Western American Literature, and Diálogo. Cultural criticisms can be found on Salon.com, YogaBrains, and her blog, Write to Right. Current projects include Chica!Go!: An Afro-Latina Punk Odyssey and First Spanish. She has presented her work internationally.
Professor Vincent Toro is a poet and playwright from New York where he teaches for The City University of New York’s Bronx Community College and The DreamYard Project, a nonprofit organization that places working artists in the schools and local communities. Ahsahta Press recently awarded Professor Toro with the Sawtooth Poetry Prize; his manuscript of poems, to be released in 2016, is titled Stereo.Island.Mosaic. He has an MFA from Rutgers University, received a 2014 Poet’s House Emerging Poet’s Fellowship, and was awarded a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship in Poetry for 2014. His poems have been published in Rattapallax, The Paterson Literary Review, Vallum, Bordersenses, Kweli Literary Journal, The Buenos Aires Review, Really System, Five Quarterly, Codex, Duende Literary Journal, and in the anthologies CHORUS, edited by Saul Williams, and The Waiting Room Reader 2, edited by Rachel Hadas.
moderator: Sharmila Mukherjee