Ethnic Beats: Miguel Algarín at Rutgers

The beat of percussion and the voice of poetry are artistic in their own right, but former Rutgers student and professor Miguel Algarín shows that together, they can form a unique and harmonious pair. As the author of more than 10 books of poetry, the editor of anthologies and the founder of the widely recognized arts forum the Nuyorican Poets Café, Algarín has gained the respect of a vast literary community. But while he has clearly branched out of the New Brunswick scene, this Puerto Rican poet does not forget his alma mater.

Miguel Algarín came to the Rutgers Student Center on the College Avenue campus on Nov. 11, as the second guest speaker for the Writers at Rutgers Reading Series. With an animated personality and rhythmic voice, he began reciting his poetry — not just as a reading, but as an artistic collaboration with congas, tall Cuban drums. When Algarín repeated words and phrases, the drummer's beats grew faster and louder. The lively performance was well received, with laughs at his spontaneous humor, applause at his literary, and thematic intelligence and wonder at his fearless attitude. "Puerto Rican children have nothing to say in school" is the first line of a popular poem, entitled Biological, about a boy who is punished by his teacher for being late to school and peeing in his pants, but says nothing to defend himself. Ending with the same sentence it begins with, it creates a wraparound, encompassing an effect symbolizing the inability to change the socio-cultural issues that occur daily.

Known to cover the topic of politics and culture, Algarín writes in English, Spanish and sometimes a combination of the two, which appeals to not only bilingual audiences, but also to lovers of language and technique. He seems proud of his heritage and is not afraid to explore bilingual vocabulary and word associations. The poem A Mongo Affair speaks phrases like "viejo, anciano africano, Washington/ will send you in your old age/ to clean the battlefields" and "your feelings cocinan/ en mi sangre." Lines like "don't fill me of vain/ disturbing love for an island/ filled with Burger Kings,/ for I know there are no cuchifritos/ in Borinquen" are full of honesty, intimacy and deep socio-cultural thought and response. He made it seem like there was not even the thinnest barrier between him and the audience. He read an entire poem in Spanish, which demonstrates that a language barrier does not take away from a poem's emotion and pleasurably lyrical sound.

What senior Starky Morillo found most interesting about Algarín's reading was "he was a real poet first and then an ethnic poet." Morillo says, "His culture and its influence simply showed because that is who he is. The poems themselves were not all about the problems of a foreigner in another country — he presented a range of topics which shows how versatile he is."

Indeed, when Algarín shifted to the area of romance, he maintained his stark humorous tone. One of his popular love poems compares the heart to bubblegum claiming that he will not rip out his lover's hair if she finally decides to stop chewing on his heart.

Ultimately, Algarín connects with people of all races, colors and ages through not only his simple, straightforward words, but also with his strong societal statements.

The Writers at Rutgers Reading series are open to all audiences. The next event features Temple Grandin, the author of eight books and more than 300 articles in scientific journals and livestock periodicals, on Tuesday, Dec. 1 at the Rutgers Student Center on the College Avenue campus.