Papolitico ― Poems of a Political Persuasion

PAPOLiTICO, POEMS OF A POLITICAL PERSUASION is award-winning poet Jesus Papoleto Melendez' sixth book of poetry. Witty, wise, personal and political, Melendez, often weary of the social issues and politics of the day, has created an exciting compilation of new and previously published poems in a collection that he has daringly named after himself to nudge people out of complacency. His poetry is written with satirical and ironic wit, presented in a "cascading” style that dictates the beat and rhythm of his poems he has become known for. This volume contains some of Melendez' classic poems, like "A San Diego Southern/African Night,” with new poems that are a bit edgier and challenge the status quo. Despite the frustrations and harsh realities we live in today, Melendez maintains an eternal belief that it is never too late for our future to be changed for the better, making PAPOLiTICO a poetic call for tolerance, reflection, reconciliation, and healing.

JESUS PAPOLETO MELENDEZ (Papo) is an award-winning New York-born poet who is also a playwright, teacher and activist recognized as one of the founders of the Nuyorican Movement. He has published several volumes of poetry: CASTING LONG SHADOWS (1970), HAVE YOU SEEN LIBERATION (1971), STREET POETRY & OTHER POEMS (1972), CONCERTOS ON MARKET STREET (1994); and the stage plays THE JUNKIES STOLE THE CLOCK (New York Shakespeare Festival, 1974), and AN ELEMENT OF ART (El Porton Theatre Co., 1978). His book, HEY YO! YO SOY! 40 YEARS OF NUYORICAN STREET POETRY, A BILINGUAL EDITION (2012), is comprised of his three previously published books from the 1970s.