I’m getting ready for tomorrow’s KAPWA Conference, which takes place at San Francisco State University. I’ll be moderating the Pinay Poetics panel at 2:45 pm in Burk Hall Room #241. Speaking on poetic process will be Aimee Suzara, Elsa Valmidiano, Irene Faye Duller, Karen Llagas, Maiana Minahal, and Niki Escobar.
I am anticipating some sincere and detailed articulation of how each poet comes to her poem. I have been thinking about why this would be important information. On this here blog, I discuss my work all the time. It’s been helping me clarify for myself what I am doing with each poem, with each poetic project, and with manuscript. I’ve been pleasantly surprised to hear from other poets, emerging and otherwise, that my ruminations are helpful to them. I’m glad for this.
I want to bring this level of discussion into Filipino American spaces. I want the discussions we bring into Filipino American spaces to be concrete, demonstrative and encouraging of diversity. Here, meaning in the SF Bay Area, we hear a lot of abstract, nostalgic, and essentialist discussions of politics and Filipino American poetry. Discussions of craft, and diversity of poetics, are often deemphasized. Our Bay Area Filipino American literary tradition is predominantly an oral tradition, very grassroots, and very politicized. I think this is awesome, and I am so glad to have grown up in it. In the spirit of Kapwa, I want to understand more how the individual poet places herself in relation to this tradition. I want to know how she works concretely, how she negotiates community expectations, and externally imposed expectations of what Filipina American writing is supposed to be about, and what it is supposed to sound like.
Ultimately, I want aspiring and emerging writers to know that even within such a tight community, they can and should find their own way. Don’t fall into these singular, essentialist, “Who is the next Jessica Hagedorn,” or “Only when writing in the vein of Manong Al Robles is your poetry authentically Filipino American,” ways of thinking. Filipino American poetry is more than our very important icons. In the Bay Area, we can say our poetry grew from them, and that it became so many different things. It continues to become many different things. This is appropriate, given how diverse our community is. Still, discussions of poetry I find relatively unopen to so many possibilities, and still rather fixated on singular authenticity. I am interested instead in cultivating substantive, critical dialogue with our colleagues. I want writers to be encouraged to put in concrete work, to experiment, and take risks, to actively seek mentors, role models, teachers wherever they can, to read all kinds of stuff. Grow community, bridge community this way. I want these discussions to be forward looking.
Of the Pinay Poetics panelists and myself:
- Four have completed MFA degrees in Poetry.
- One is starting in a MFA program in Fiction the fall.
- One holds a MA degree in Asian American Studies.
- One has completed a BA degree in Creative Writing.
- Two have published full length collections with indie publishers.
- (At least) One has participated in Poetry for the People.
- One has taught for Poetry for the People.
- (At least) One has participated in VONA.
- Three have taught for Kearny Street Workshop.
- (At least) Five have performed in KSW’s APAture.
- Two have presented on AWP panels.
- One teaches for California Poets in the Schools.
- Two teach in local community college English Departments.
This group is “young” by Literary Industry standards. We represent a relatively wide array of studying writing, teaching, publishing, and performance experience, some multidisciplinary. We’ve done open mics and performed with spoken word collectives. We’ve done DIY chapbooks. We’ve submitted poems and manuscripts for prizes and publication. I would like to think this group of Pinay poets represents a necessary bridging of local community arts with formalized, institutional spaces. I would like to think this group of Pinay poets has really worked, and continues to work at poetry, and all its affiliated efforts. My key words here, in case you can’t tell: concrete, work, and bridging.
Tags: Kapwa Conference 2009
