Latina poetry facts for kids

Latina poetry is a special kind of poetry written by women who have Latin American family roots. Many of these poets live in the United States. Some moved there from Latin American countries, while others were born in the U.S. into families from places like Mexico, Cuba, or Puerto Rico.

These poets often write in both Spanish and English in the same poem. This is called code-switching. Sometimes, they even blend the two languages together to create a unique mix called Spanglish.

Some famous Latina poets include Gloria E. Anzaldúa, Giannina Braschi, Sandra Cisneros, Ana Castillo, Cherríe Moraga, and Lorna Dee Cervantes. Newer poets like Ada Limon, Monica de la Torre, and Elizabeth Acevedo are also making their mark. Latina poetry comes in many different styles. For example, Sandra Cisneros and Ana Castillo write lyric poems, which are like songs that share feelings about families, moving to new places (called migration), and borders. Giannina Braschi writes epic poetry, which are long poems about big topics like love, government (or politics), and war.

What Latina Poets Write About

Latina poetry explores many interesting subjects. Some popular topics are love, family, moving to a new country (called immigration), being away from home (called exile), the border between Mexico and the United States, and making society fair for everyone (called social justice). Many Latina poets, like Ana Castillo, Julia Alvarez, and Judith Cofer Ortiz, often write about their families, traditional foods, their languages, Latino culture, and their grandmothers.

Famous Latina Poets

Here are some of the talented Latina poets:

• Elizabeth Acevedo
• Julia Alvarez
• Gloria E. Anzaldúa
• Giannina Braschi
• Carmen Boullosa
• Ana Castillo
• Sandra Cisneros
• Cynthia Cruz
• Julia de Burgos
• Sandra Maria Esteves
• Rosario Ferre
• Lorna Dee Cervantes
• Ada Limon
• Carmen Maria Machado
• Lupe Mendez
• Nancy Mercado
• Cherríe Moraga