VivirLatino

Yesterday, It was with great sadness that I read about the death of Puerto Rican author, poet, and inspiration to many – Piri Thomas. According to a release that I received via the National Institute for Latino Policy, Thomas, 83 years old, passed away on Monday, surrounded by his family after struggling with pneumonia.

I, like many, first became aware of Thomas via his book Down These Mean Streets, which looks at life in el barrio (Spanish Harlem, NYC) for a young Afro-Cuban Rican, and how the complex intersections of race, poverty, and urban policies guided him through a struggle that included drugs, prison, activism and art.

I was a teenager when I first read Down these Mean Streets, struggling with my own NYRican identity and what it meant. His words were part of my learning to navigate identity and what to do with my definition of self. I was 18 when I was lucky enough to meet Thomas. I was in college and he was giving a presentation open to the whole school, but those of us in the Latino organization, Solidaridad Latina, were able to have a small intimate lunch with him. At this point I already considered myself a writer and and an activist – although an infant in both of these roles. It was during these meetings that I became exposed to Thomas’s poetry. If Down These Mean Streets is a brutally honest look at gritty realities and painful realities, his poetry is words on bright alas de mariposas offering a new vision for growth and evolution. I was struck by how hopeful and joyful Thomas was. The light he exuded was not in spite of his struggles – it was a direct result of it and he encouraged us all to work through our lives unapologetically and like the title of a poem of his that I always remember – he invited us to be born anew at each a.m.

So gracias Piri – no te digo adios because you live on through your words and your actions that have touched the hearts, minds, and souls of so many – including this NY Rican from Queens.