SMC Continues Free Literary Talks & Readings Series April 3, 2025

SMC Continues Free Literary Talks & Readings Series April 3

Spring 2025 Presenters: Santa Clara County Poet Laureate Yosimar Reyes and Award-winning Poet José Pablo Barragán Nieto

SANTA MONICA, CA — Santa Monica College (SMC) continues its free Literary Talks & Readings series this spring with an on-campus talk on April 3 by Santa Clara County Poet Laureate Yosimar Reyes about what inspires his poetry, and a hands-on poetry workshop online on April 8 led by award-winning poet José Pablo Barragán Nieto. All presentations in the series are free, and will be held either on the SMC Main Campus (1900 Pico, Blvd., Santa Monica; seating is strictly on a first-arrival basis) or online (link available on event date at smc.edu/events (opens in new window) ). Presentations are subject to change or cancellation without notice.

The Spring 2025 Literary Talks & Readings series lineup is:

Thursday, April 3, 11:15 a.m. ‑— Yosimar Reyes: “Venimos A Triunfar” (“We Came to Be Triumphant”) — in Stromberg Hall (HSS 165) on the SMC Main Campus (1900 Pico Blvd., Santa Monica). Santa Clara County Poet Laureate Yosimar Reyes will present an insightful talk about how his poetry is inspired by his community. His goal, as the first undocumented poet to reach this position, is to help people find poetry in their everyday lives. Reyes was chosen to be a 2024 Creative Ambassador by the City of San Jose, The Advocate named him one of “13 LGBT Latinos Changing the World,” and Remezcla included him in “10 Up And Coming Latinx Poets You Need To Know.” Reyes has been awarded a NALAC Catalyst for Change Grant, a Gerbode Foundation Grant, and most recently, a Walter & Elise Haas Creative Work Fund Grant. His writing has appeared in numerous publications, including “Mariposas: A Modern Anthology of Queer Latino Poetry”; “Somewhere We Are Human: Authentic Voices on Migration, Survival, and New Beginnings”; and the forthcoming “UndocuPoetics.” Sponsored by the SMC Associates, Dream Resource Center, IDEAS at SMC, Student Equity Center, Ethnic Studies Program, Dream Program, The Latino Center/Adelante, Black Collegians/UMOJA, and EOPS/CARE.

Tuesday, April 8, 11:15 a.m. — José Pablo Barragán Nieto: “Finding nuestra voz!” — online; see event date at smc.edu/events (opens in new window) for Zoom link. Award-winning poet José Pablo Barragán Nieto will lead a hands-on poetry workshop that explores several poems by well-known Latine authors on the topics of mixed identity, migration, and belonging. Participants will have a chance to write and share their own poems written in English, Spanglish, and/or Spanish. Barragán Nieto teaches Spanish languages and cultures at Temple University and has co-organized numerous poetry festivals in the US and Spain. He is a skilled translator who has published numerous academic works, and the author of three collections of poetry. His most recent book, “Tarea de español” (2023), won the prestigious 34th José Hierro International Poetry Prize. His previous collections, “Lugares comunes” (2008) and “La Nave” (2012), were also well received by readers and reviewers alike. Sponsored by the SMC Associates and SMC Department of Modern Languages and Cultures.

For more than two decades, the SMC Literary Series has brought to campus such acclaimed writers as Khaled Hosseini (author of the bestselling “The Kite Runner”), Steph Cha (writer of the popular ‘Juniper Song’ novels), Audrey Niffenegger (author of the bestselling “Time Traveler’s Wife”), Edward J. Larson (author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning “Summer for the Gods: The Scopes Trial and America’s Continuing Debate Over Science and Religion”), and Viet Thanh Nguyen (author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning “The Sympathizer”).

Additional information is available by calling SMC’s Office of Public Programs at (310) 434-4100.

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