Reviews
News & Views
Calaca's Call for Submissions
From STANDARDS Volume
7 Number 2 Spring-Summer 2001
Staying on top of Chicanismo?
Here's what you'll need from our friends at Calaca this year:
When Skin Peels, poetry
by Elba Rosario Sánchez and Olga Angelina García
Echeverría, on audio cd. While it's still true that all
publishing houses, large and small, continue to underrepresent
the voices of Latinas, at least at Calaca, there's always some
amount of risk-taking -- including with Chicana poets. Academicians
looking for easy explanations or formulae to describe "the"
Chicana experience are bound to get their panties in a bunch
over the poetic stylings of Sánchez and Echeverría.
And that's fine by us. Just as in our cocinas y cafés,
our classrooms and conference halls, these are the voices of
Chicanas reverberating for real, unfettered by excuses. Sánchez,
a writer, teacher, and activist in Oakland (okay: Oaktown, for
you homies) brings the suave blend of modalities we love to see
from the Bay Area. Meanwhile, Echeverría holds forth with
that particular brand of East Los in-your-face poetics that keep
it real. Is this "new feminism"? Maybe. But, for one
gleaming moment, put your isms aside, and cozy up with the 31
tracks of spoken word in this collection. You need it.
Los Many Mundos de raúlsalinas:
un poetic jazz viaje con friends, spoken word and jazz mezcla,
on audio cd. You want fresh, hip, sage, and historical, all in
the same beat? Then get with one of the Chicano Movimiento's
foremost authors, raúl salinas, as he pours forth spoken
Chicanismo, backed by Mikey Figgins and Kevin P. Green, the bass
player and drummer, respectively, who have consistently sounded
out for San Diego's Taco Shop Poets. And this is no Carlos Santana
revisiting old haunts with fresh blood, amigos: salinas is pounding
hard, still and again, with new works as fresh and loaded as
the morning dew over Imperial Beach. No, it's not "pure
jazz," and it ain't that "pure poetry" you got
taught in school. But it is pure raza, updated for the 21st century.
Welcome.
Raza Spoken Here, Volumes
1 and 2, collections of raza poetry on audio cd. The picante
rhythms and sounds we've only begin to appreciate and expect
from the most cutting-edge Chicano poets, heartfully gathered
for your listening pleasure by the folks at Calaca. Get this
cd for the classroom, the car, even the bedroom. It's time.
as our barrio turns ... who the yoke b on?, the first novel by
controversial Chicano poet, alurista. Socio-political salvos
you might not expect, along with the ones you've been preening
for your whole life. If this isn't a definitive novel, it's certainly
one you'll be ready to discuss. So read it.
Campesino Fingerprints, poetry by Rod-Ricardo Livingston. Quiet,
well-shaped meditations we hope will guide your tired bones into
a new and tender regard for the poetry of la raza. Andale.
===================================
.
News and Views from Calaca
One of the things we like
best about being on Calaca's active email list is receiving all
those up-to-date newsclips. Poetry readings. Live performances.
Protests. Legal actions. New sites for Chicanismo.
Among these, a new favorite
emerges: Between the Lines: The New World Disorder Online. Herein,
it is written that, "A recent study from the Canadian Undocumented
Labor Office (CULO) shows that greater numbers of undocumented
immigrants are bypassing the US on their journey north, preferring
to seek a better life in Canada. Analysts say this could have
major consequences for the US economy, agriculture, Republican
scapegoating and sales of leaf blowers." This from Victor
Payan, "Pocho Northern Mexposure Correspondent" and
owner of the site, in an article cheekily titled, "MEXICANADA:
Immigrants by-passing U.S. for friendly neighbor to the north."
Read on... And be sure to check out Payan's "American dud
on American soil! Evidence suggests Bush trip to Mexico was faked"
-- an article postulating that the prez didn't seem to visit
el otro lado ("Late last night, intrepid net-xicans began
posting messages citing irregularities in the official press
photos from the alleged trip. Then the floodgates opened. In
one photo, a Landry's Seafood House is clearly visible in the
background. In another, Bush is holding what appears to be a
Whataburger next to a statue of defunct singing sensation Selena.
And most disturbing of all is the presence of a bumper sticker
on Vicente Fox's limousine which reads "No Meces Con Tejas.").
Meanwhile on the web, Calaca
Press celebrates the birth on its new internet home, Calacalandia!
Here, find constantly updated scheduling information for Calaca
Press-sponsored events, and other fine activities, including
book signings; poetry readings; live performances; and news on
the struggle to keep San Diego's Centro Cultural de La Raza alive
and kickin'.
Things are always changing
in our mundo Latino. And, as Calaca owner Brent would say, "We're
down for the task (at least so far)."
===================================
From Calaca Press: An
Open Call for Submissions
Calaca Press...continuing
the oral tradition
Calaca Press is happy to
announce that we will be continuing the bilingual spoken word
CD compilation series, Raza Spoken Here. The first two volumes
in the series featured the Taco Shop Poets, Olga Angelina Garcia
Echeverría, Elba Rosario Sanchez, Manuel J. Vélez,
Sandra C. Muñoz, Chuy Quintero, Daniel Sanchez-Glazer,
Christian Ramírez, Trago Amargo (in RSH1) and raúlrsalinas,
Leticia Hernández-Linares, alurista, tatiana de la tierra,
Los Delicados, Grito Serpentino, alejandra ibarra, Antonieta
Villamil, Rod Ricardo-Livingstone, Tammy Gomez, and robertkarimi
(in RSH2).
Twenty different poets/groups
on two volumes.
We're looking for ten more
for the third.
Are you ready to continue
the tradition?
Raza Spoken Here 3 (RSH3)
Submission Guidelines
Submissions to RSH3 can
be submitted in English, español, caló, code-switching,
pocho, Spanglish, as well as in any language that is used to
reflect the Chicano/Latino/Indigenous experience throughout the
Americas.
There are three things that
Calaca Press will be looking for in the submissions:
1) Quality of writing -
Never underestimate the importance of a well-written piece.
2) Subject matter - Does work reflect Chicano/Latino/Indigenous
experience?
3) Delivery - Perform the pieces, donít just read them.
Music is encouraged.
Another factor is location.
Calaca Press is a small family operation, run by a husband and
wife team. Neither makes a salary off Calaca. Therefore we can't
afford to fly people into town and put them up at the Hilton.
All we can do is extend our famous (ask any Calaquera/o) Calaca
hospitality, which includes our infamous couch, food, and some
gas money. If you can afford your own way to San Diego then that
may factor into the decision (as long as points 1, 2, & 3
are followed).
Send between three and five
poetry pieces on CD or tape only (we are not looking for sound
quality on the recording). No epic poems. Between one to five
minutes or so each is good. Include a typed hard copy of each
piece recorded with submission.
Between one and three pieces
per poet will be used on RSH3 (taking up no more than 7 minutes
total). 1000 copies of Raza Spoken Here 3 will be made. Each
poet will receive 20 copies of the CD (if more CD's are wanted
Calaca will provide a special discount to the poets involved
in RSH3). Poet retains all rights to their work after production
(if time allows during recording session poets may record extra
pieces to be used for whatever purposes author deems necessary).
Deadline for submissions
is 10/31/01. Recording will commence sometime between January
2002 through the Summer of 2002 with a projected release date
around Winter 2002-2003.
Include a self addressed
stamped envelope (with the correct return postage) with every
submission. Calaca Press will not return, nor respond, to submissions
without a SASE (with the correct return postage).
Mail submissions to:
Calaca Press
c/o RSH3
P.O. Box 620786
San Diego, CA 92162
Please keep in mind that
we are small so things take a while. We will not respond to submissions
until after the submission deadline of 10/31/01.
