From Poets Responding To SB 1070: “In ...

6 months ago 49 notes el salvador indigenous latin@ sb 1070 pipil nahua

From Poets Responding To SB 1070:

“In commemoration of the massacre of more than 30,000 indigenous people of El Salvador on January 22, 1932, I proudly present my grandmother María Luisa Pérez, from Santo Domingo de Guzmán, Sonsonate, El Salvador. Mamita “Wicha” Naja ne mitz negui ne nunan!” - Jorge Tetl Argueta

Pictured above : Mamita “Wicha” ( María Luisa Pérez)

Indian Song

by Jorge Tetl Argueta

My name is Jorge
But you can call me Tetl
My grandmother
María Luisa Pérez
Pipil Nahua healer
Gave me that name
Perhaps the old lady
Knew what was coming to me
That’s why she named me Rock
In our language Nahuatl

I came to the United States
In 1981
I was lost in the desert
I was persecuted
I was jailed
I was humiliated
Deported
I returned
In all four directions
And I am home here now

I’ve been all over the Unites States
Including Arizona
Where I had met
Navajo Indians
Who look like me
Mexican Indians
Who look like me
Apache Indians
Who look like me

Everywhere I go
In this country I’ve met
North Americans
Europeans
And African Americans
And Chinese
And people from other cultures
Who don’t look at all like me

I am a Native American Indian
From El Salvador

My name is Tetl
I am not like you
I don’t look like you
But I am your brother
Your uncle
Your father
And your grandfather

I am like you
With amazing feet
Knees
And legs
Belly
Chin
Lips
Eyes
Ears
Long hair
And brown skin

I look like you
But I am not like you

In Texas I read
A sign that says
“Don’t fuck with Texas”
And a man told me
“We skin your kind around here”

In Arizona a young man killed
A girl as beautiful as the sunrise
Injured others
Is jailed
And the people of the United States cry and mourn
And remain still
As the first day of snow or rain

In the midst of all this pain
Anger and confusion
I say let’s honor our Mother Earth
And her wonderful belly
Let’ s pour water
For the spirits before us
Let’s pour water
For all the stolen dreams
For the dreamers
And for all our dreams
Let’s pour water
So we can all heal
And keep on dreaming
Long live those
Resisting to give up
Their dream

I say let us not forget our history
Let’s us never forget who we are
And where we come from
Let us move on healing our wounds
From anger
Racism
And selfishness
Let us be brothers and sisters
I say let us pour water
And as warriors hear
The gentle beat
Of our mother earth
Calling us to make peace