Openly Gay Hispanic-American Selected As Inaugural Poet
Source: TPM
TOM KLUDT 9:27 AM EST, WEDNESDAY JANUARY 9, 2013
Richard Blanco will serve as the poet for the presidential inaugration later this month, the Presidential Inaugural Committee announced Wednesday, making him the first LGBT and first Hispanic-American individual to recite a poem at the quadrennial ceremony. Blanco, 44, will also be the youngest inaugural poet ever.
The announcement:
Today, the Presidential Inauguration Committee (PIC) announced that Richard Blanco will serve as the Inaugural poet at the swearing-in ceremony on Monday, January 21. Blanco will be the youngest-ever Inaugural poet and the first Hispanic or LGBT person to recite a poem at the swearing-in ceremony.
“I’m honored that Richard Blanco will join me and Vice President Biden at our second Inaugural,” President Obama said today. “His contributions to the fields of poetry and the arts have already paved a path forward for future generations of writers. Richard’s writing will be wonderfully fitting for an Inaugural that will celebrate the strength of the American people and our nation’s great diversity.”
Born in Spain to Cuban exiles, Blanco’s parents emigrated to New York City days after his birth and eventually settled in Miami. Blanco began his career as a consultant engineer. Writing about abstract concepts and preparing arguments on behalf of his clients helped Blanco think about the “engineering” of language, and he left his job in 1999 for the creative writing faculty at Central Connecticut State University until 2001. Thereafter he served as instructor at various universities throughout the country, including American and Georgetown universities, all the while maintaining his career in consulting engineer.
-snip-
Read more: http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/openly-gay-hispanic-american-selected-as-inaugural-poet
= new reply since forum marked as read
