Ricardo Sánchez (poet)
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Ricardo Sánchez (29 March 1941 – 3 September 1995) was a writer, poet, professor, and activist. Sometimes called the "grandfather of Chicano poetry," Sánchez gained national acclaim for his 1971 poetry collection ''Canto y Grito Mi Liberacion''. Incarcerated in his twenties for stealing money to feed his struggling family, Sánchez read extensively and even learned
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while at Soledad Prison in California. Upon his release in 1969, his poems were included in a poetry anthology. In 1971, his first solo collection of poetry was published, establishing Sánchez as one of the nation's most important
Chicano Chicano (masculine form) or Chicana (feminine form) is an ethnic identity for Mexican Americans that emerged from the Chicano Movement. In the 1960s, ''Chicano'' was widely reclaimed among Hispanics in the building of a movement toward politic ...
poets.


Early life

From a very early age, Sánchez knew he wanted to be a writer. Born during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
on March 29, 1941, in El Barrio del Diablo,
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, Sánchez was the youngest of 13 children. As a teenager, he was a gifted student and notable young poet. In 1958, he had turning point after a high school teacher told him, "Chicano boys don't grow up to be poets. Janitors maybe, but not writers." The next year, Sánchez dropped out of high school to join the
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. He earned a G.E.D. in the service; nevertheless, his stint ended with a
dishonorable discharge A military discharge is given when a member of the armed forces is released from their obligation to serve. Each country's military has different types of discharge. They are generally based on whether the persons completed their training and the ...
after he was arrested and sentenced to prison in 1960 at the age of nineteen. After three years, Sánchez was paroled in 1963. Soon after his release, he married his wife, María Teresa Silva, yet he struggled to support his growing family. In 1965, shortly before their first child was born, Sánchez was tried and sentenced again for armed robbery. Upon his release from Soledad in 1969, however, Sánchez found his first string of successes as a writer.


Writing

After publishing his work in an edited anthology, Sánchez received a prestigious Frederick Douglass journalism fellowship. In 1970, he was accepted into the
doctoral program A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''Licentiate (degree), licentia docendi' ...
at
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. He received his PhD in
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in 1974 and received a tenure track faculty position at
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. While teaching at Washington State, Sánchez continued publishing his work to great acclaim. His collection ''Hechizospells'' (1976) was praised as "awesome in its sweep and profundity about the human condition." The poet
Maya Angelou Maya Angelou ( ; born Marguerite Annie Johnson; April 4, 1928 – May 28, 2014) was an American memoirist, poet, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and is credi ...
described his work: “Ricardo Sanchez is like any great poet. He’s at once a preacher, a teacher, a priest, a rabbi. He’s a guru, he’s a master. And because he is that he’s also a rebel. He’s a maverick. Every great teacher is a maverick.” Sánchez' "raging cries for cultural justice" and "startling, angry verse" are often credited as foundational to the fields of Chicano poetry and modern Chicano literature. He died from
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in 1995 at the age of 54. His papers today are held at both the
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and
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.


Works

* ''Canto Y Grito Mi Liberación'' (Washington State University Press, 1971). * ''Hechizospells'' (University of California Press, 1976). * ''Brown Bear Honey Madnesses: Alaskan Cruising Poems'' (Slough Press, 1981). * ''Amsterdam Cantos y Poemas Pistos'' (Place of Herons, 1983). * ''Selected Poems'' (Arte Publico Press, 1985). * ''Bertrand & the Mehkqoverse: A Xicano Filmic Nuance'' (Slough Press, 1989). * ''Eagle-Visioned/Feathered Adobes: Manito Sojourns & Pachuco Ramblings October 4 to 24, 1981'' (Cinco Puntos Press, 1990). * ''Amerikan journeys = Jornadas americanas'' (Rob Lewis, 1995). * ''The Loves of Ricardo'' (Tia Chucha Press, 1997). yes


Bibliographical Resources

https://faculty.ucmerced.edu/mmartin-rodriguez/index_files/vhSanchezRicardo.htm


See also

* List of Chicano poets * Pinto (subculture)


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sánchez, Ricardo 1941 births 1995 deaths 20th-century American poets Activists for Hispanic and Latino American civil rights American civil rights activists American people of Mestizo descent American poets of Mexican descent Hispanic and Latino American poets Latin Americanists Mestizo writers