SW New Mexico News

Las Cruces Public Libraries is set to launch a series of poetry discussions and crafting sessions titled "Palabras y Artesanias" (Words and Crafts). The inaugural session will take place at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, January 14, 2025, at the Thomas Branigan Memorial Library located at 200 E. Picacho Avenue. Interested participants are required to register for each session.

This initiative is supported by the Latino Poetry – Places We Call Home grant, which aims to encourage national conversations through a new poetry anthology. The anthology is categorized into eight themes: Ancestry and Identity, Language, Voice and Resistance, First and Second Homes, Family and Community, Music and Performance, Labor, Earth and Myth.

The first session will focus on the theme of Ancestry & Identity. According to the library's announcement, "The Latin American diaspora is large and multifaceted," with Latino poets showcasing a diverse range of cultures and histories. Participants in this session will engage in crafting their own Lucha Libre masks using leather materials provided by the library.

Future sessions will continue at 4 p.m. on selected Tuesdays until April at the same venue. Details about these sessions can be found on the library's events calendar.

Attendees are encouraged to read poems related to each session's theme from the anthology beforehand. These poems are accessible online via the events calendar link or available at Las Cruces Public Libraries' Picacho Avenue location.

This program forms part of "Latino Poetry: Places We Call Home," a significant public humanities project led by Library of America with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities and Emerson Collective.

For further details, Mindy Del Campo can be contacted at (575) 528-4024 or via email at [email protected]. Alternative formats of this document can be requested by calling (575) 528-4102 (Voice), especially for those requiring disability accommodations for participation in this event.