Our sorry state of being stems from the notion that we, as masters of the universe, can extract what we want from nature, which, in turn, leads to the “rich” mastering the “poor.” We need fundamental transformation. Adamu Jenitongo said that we need to listen to one another. We need to engage in deep listening. We need to be more modest about our capabilities, and we have to be much more respectful of the environment. If we don’t make these changes, our future will be exponentially worse. Listening is not just hearing what other people say. It’s tuning in to the other person. Such listening is a multi-sensorial experience. It does take a little bit of practice. In the end, these simple interpersonal practices can immeasurably enrich your life-in-the-world. In my experience, the results are transformative.
Paul Stoller in interview by Anna Badkhen at Nautilus. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
An anthropologist schooled in spiritual healing offers wisdom for troubled times.
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Roberto Lovato is a journalist and a member of The Writers Grotto. He is one of the country's leading writers and thinkers on Central American gangs, refugees, violence and other issues. Lovato is also a co-founder of #DignidadLiteraria, the national movement formed to combat the invisibility and silencing of Latinx stories and books in the U.S. publishing industry. He is also recipient of a reporting grant from the Pulitzer Center and a former fellow at UC Berkeley's Latinx Research Center. His new book is Unforgetting: A Memoir of Family, Migration, Gangs, and Revolution in the Americas, published by HarperCollins. He lives in San Francisco.
Myriam Gurba is a writer and artist. She is the author of the true-crime memoir Mean, a New York Times editors' choice. O, the Oprah Magazine, ranked Mean as one of the best LGBTQ books of all time. Publishers' Weekly describes Gurba as having a voice like no other. She lives in Long Beach, California.
Roberto and Myriam discuss Roberto’s new book, Unforgetting, in our City Lights LIVE! discussion series on Tuesday, September, 8th.
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Where are you writing to us from?
Roberto Lovato: The Outer Mission in San Francisco.
Myriam Gurba: Los Angeles County.
What’s kept you sane this year?
RL: My family, the dream of revolution, and new love in my life.
MG: Long walks. Petting animals. Laughing at assholes.
What are 3 books you always recommend to people?
RL: Muriel Rukeyser's The Life of Poetry, James Baldwin's The Fire Next Time, Roque Dalton's Poemas Clandestinos.
MG: The Ballad of the Sad Café by Carson McCullers, Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison, Pedro Páramo by Juan Rulfo.
Which writers, artists, and others influence your work in general, and this book, specifically?
RL:
Roque Dalton, his example as a poet-warrior.
Lana Wachowski and Lilly Wachowski, in terms of the combination of action, poetry, and philosophy in The Matrix (the first movie, which is the only worthy one)
James Baldwin
Dante's Inferno
Audre Lorde
Adrienne Rich
Toni Morrison's Beloved
Albert Camus
Hannah Arendt
Mario Puzo & Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather
Victor Serge
If you opened a bookstore, where would it be located, what would it be called, and what would your bestseller be?
RL: I'd open a bookstore in New York near the part on Broadway where the Big Five publishers are headquartered. In honor of Latino intellectuality, I'd call it Frijolegentsia and Roque Dalton's Poemas Clandestinos would be selling like mad as we plot to subvert publishing as we know it.
MG: I would open a bookstore in LA and call it Book Bitch. My bestsellers would be written by queer women of color with radical politics.
I’m continuing my historical education with this #nonfictionnovember read by #robertolovato I lived in Australia for the first half of the 80’s and then moved to San Francisco for the 2nd half. I lived in the Mission and remember when many restaurant and store signs started changing from “Mexican” to “El Salvadoran”, but, I’m ashamed to say, I never understood the reasoning behind it. Granted, I did have a lot going on with trying to adjust to being back in America, to a new step mother and little sister, to public school and making new friends, to learning all the pop culture my Mom had restricted, and to trying to get know my Dad before he hit the expiration date his doctors had given which he’d already pushed the boundaries on. #Unforgetting took me back and filled me in on what was going on then and through to now. Immigration is a huge issue and often people make quick judgements on it without knowing all sides of the issue. There’s a lot more to it than just the laws, building walls, ICE raids, and the slurs/lies spouted on TV/internet. This #memoir goes back and forth through time retelling the experiences of different members of Mr. Lovato’s family both in the US and El Salvador while also explaining the wars, US involvement in them, deportation, caravans of immigrants, gangs, and much more. This is a great starting point, but I know there’s more to know. Any recommendations for other books around the immigration issue would be much appreciated. #bookstagram #bookgeek #readersofinstagram #bookworm #immigration #booknerd #readthisbook #bookish #reading #bibliophile #nonfiction #bookaddict #bookaholic #bookaholicsanonymous #bibliotherapy #books #migration #gangs #elsalvador #learninghistory #somuchtolearn #audiobooks #librarybooks #audiobookstagram #booksonlibby https://www.instagram.com/p/CH-ylhxAm-w/?igshid=11ipmz0zcqm4u
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Street Names, Monuments and Maps reveal so much about the City of Philadelphia. I can always find a story in it. #unforgetting #reconnecting #Reconstructions #PHLAssembled (at Center City)
