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Miguel Algarín Jr.

ミゲル・アルガリン・ジュニア

Migeru Arugarin Jr.

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1941-09-11 （Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico）
Died
2020-11-30 （New York City, U.S.） age 79
Nationality
Puerto Rican
Languages
Spanish, English
Residence History
Early life: Santurce, Puerto Rico; migrated with family to Manhattan's Lower East Side in 1950 → Adult life: New York City (Lower East Side / East Village)

Career

Occupations
Poet, Scholar, Editor, Playwright, Translator, Theatre producer
Active Years
1963-2020
Affiliations
Rutgers University (Professor, Professor Emeritus), Nuyorican Poets Café (Co-founder, Executive Producer), Brooklyn College (taught), New York University (taught)
Influenced By
Shakespeare, Miguel Piñero, Pedro Pietri
Influenced
Many Latino/U.S. poets and performers of the Nuyorican movement and later generations, The popularization of slam and performance poetry

Education

University of Wisconsin–Madison
College of Letters & Science / English
Degree: BA
Period: 1959–1963
Year of Graduation: 1963
Country: United States
Earned a B.A. in English
Pennsylvania State University
Graduate School (Humanities) / English / Comparative Literature-related
Degree: MA
Period: 1963–1965
Year of Graduation: 1965
Country: United States
Earned an M.A.
Rutgers University
Graduate School / Comparative Literature
Degree: PhD
Country: United States
Received a Ph.D. in comparative literature (year unspecified)

Awards

American Book Award
1980
Work: On Call
Organization: Before Columbus Foundation
Result: Winner
American Book Award
1985
Work: Time's Now/Ya Es Tiempo
Organization: Before Columbus Foundation
Result: Winner
American Book Award
1994
Work: Aloud: Voices from the Nuyorican Poets Café (co-edited)
Organization: Before Columbus Foundation
Result: Winner
Larry Leon Hamlin Producer's Award
2001
Organization: National Black Festival
Result: Winner
American Book Award for Lifetime Achievement
2009
Category: Lifetime Achievement
Organization: Before Columbus Foundation
Result: Winner
Obie Award (grant/honor)
Organization: OBIE Awards / The Village Voice
Result: Recipient

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Mongo affair: poems

1978 Poetry

A collection of poems from the early Nuyorican movement addressing urban life, migration, and bilingual experience.

urban lifemigrationidentitybilingualism

On Call

1980 Poetry

A poetry collection highlighting the Nuyorican voice, emphasizing performative aspects and community narratives.

communityexpressionpolitics

Body Bee Calling from the 21st Century

1982 Poetry

A collection exploring futurity and corporeality, investigating the relationship between language and the body.

corporealityfuturelanguage

Time's Now/Ya Es Tiempo

1985 Poetry

Addresses political and social themes and marks a maturation of Nuyorican poetry. One of his American Book Award-winning works.

politicscommunitytemporality

Love Is Hard Work: Memorias de Loisaida/Poems

1997 Memoir / Poetry

A hybrid of memoir and poems about love for and struggles in Loisaida (Lower East Side), preserving community memory.

local memorycommunitywork and love

Survival Supervivencia

2009 Poetry

A later collection about survival and resilience, speaking to immigration and community resistance.

survivalresilienceresistance

Bibliography

  • Mongo affair: poems (1978)
  • On Call (1980)
  • Body Bee Calling from the 21st Century (1982)
  • Time's Now/Ya Es Tiempo (1985)
  • Love Is Hard Work: Memorias de Loisaida/Poems (1997)
  • Action: The Nuyorican Poets Café Theater Festival (ed., 1997)
  • Aloud: Voices from the Nuyorican Poets Café (co-ed., 1994)
  • Survival Supervivencia (2009)

Adaptations

  • Portrayed in the film Piñero (biopic of Miguel Piñero) by Giancarlo Esposito

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Colloquial, performance-oriented poetic styleBilingual (Spanish–English) code-switchingCommunity-centered narration
Recurring Motifs
migration and homelandLower East Side (Loisaida)ethnic identitylanguage mixing

Health

  • Sepsis (cause of death)
    2020-11
    Hospitalized with sepsis in November 2020; died from sepsis

Legacy

Miguel Algarín, as co-founder of the Nuyorican Poets Café, was instrumental in the development of Latino American literature and performance poetry in New York. As a poet, editor, and educator he amplified community voices, won multiple American Book Awards, and received a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009.

Museums

  • Centro (Center for Puerto Rican Studies) archives (Hunter College, CUNY) Center for Puerto Rican Studies, Hunter College, CUNY (Manhattan)

Academic Societies

  • Before Columbus Foundation (associated via American Book Awards)

Archives

  • Manuscript materials of Miguel Algarín held at Centro, Center for Puerto Rican Studies, Hunter College, CUNY

In Popular Culture

  • Depicted in the film Piñero (Giancarlo Esposito portrays Algarín)
  • The Nuyorican Poets Café became a cultural landmark that popularized slam and performance poetry

Quotes

  • "We're live from the Nuyorican Poets Café."
    Source: Signature phrase opening radio broadcasts from the Nuyorican Poets Café on WBAI

Trivia

  • Co-founder of the Nuyorican Poets Café, a key figure in NYC poetry and performance from the 1970s onward.
  • Multiple American Book Award winner; received the Before Columbus Lifetime Achievement American Book Award in 2009.
  • Portrayed in the film Piñero.