Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

New Ptry Collection Takes Inventory of L.A. s history and pts

01/04/2016

The coiled serpent serves as a poetic totem to protect the City of Angels. Published by Tia Chucha Press

Over the last five years, a number of books and anthologies have been published to spotlight literary Los Angeles and its rich landscape of poets and writers. The newest anthology is the most extensive yet. Tia Chucha Press has just released, Coiled Serpent: Poets Arising from the Cultural Quakes and Shifts of Los Angeles. Edited by Neelanjana Banerjee, Daniel A. Olivas and Ruben J. Rodriguez, this collection includes 160 poets from well-known seasoned scribes like Wanda Coleman, Kamau Daaood, Michael C. Ford, California State Poet Laureate Dana Gioia, Peter J. Harris, Ruben Martinez, S. Pearl Sharp, Amy Uyematsu and Terry Wolverton to up-and-coming younger bards like Xochitl-Julisa Bermejo, F. Douglas Brown, Jessica Ceballos, Chiwan Choi, Francisco Escamilla, William Gonzalez, Douglas Kearney, Traci Kato-Kiriyama, Teka Lark, Karineh Mahdessian, Jeffrey Martin, Luivette Resto and Vickie Vertiz.

Chicano poet and educator Francisco X. Alarcon | Photo: National Poetry Foundation

The book is dedicated to three great writers who have died in the last few years: Wanda Coleman, John Trudell and Francisco Alarcon. The volume's four-page Introduction, is written by Los Angeles Poet Laureate Luis Rodriguez and it goes a long way to describe the collection's spirit.

For me, Los Angeles is smoldering, deeply poetic, expansively settled, with rebellion beneath the normalcy, which has un chingo to do with our collective and personal spiritual awakenings, creative birthings, political schooling---why our lives are in flames, Rodriguez writes in the anthologys introduction. He connects this smoldering spirit to the many civil unrests Los Angeles has had over the last Century and also to the contemporary shifting economic conditions that are transforming the city as we speak.

Wanda Coleman at The Smell, 2007 | Photo: Harold Abramowitz/Flickr/Creative Commons

Rodriguez uses the checkered history of the city to explain the necessity of the book and his own role as one of L.A.'s guardian angels. He also connects this stewardship to the book's title: The coiled serpent is connected to the earth, but also ready to spring, to strike, to defend or to protect. The poems in this collection are meant to protect Los Angeles from ever-present forces that threaten its communities.

He continues: As I write this, mostly black and brown people in L.A. are being driven off older urban areas. Witness the gentrification of Echo Park, Highland Park, Pico-Union, Venice, sections of South Central. There's a big 1930 Art Deco building on Broadway downtown where in the early 1980s I rented a space for $60 a month. Today this building has million dollar lofts. This background information presented by Rodriguez lays the groundwork for the 340-plus pages of poems that follow.

John Trudell was a Native American poet and activist. | Photo: Vision Maker Media

As the inscription on the back-cover states: This collection is more about range than representation, voice more than volume. The poems discuss the natural and unnatural condition of our city in the first 15 years of the new century: inequalities of income and race, how peace can blossom in a time of perpetual war, the escalation of police killings and climate peril. Poems like Laurel Ann Bogen's Blue Smoke and Steel, and F. Douglas Brown's What I Know About Watts, debunk popular myths about the City of Angels, revealing another side that is only known by long-term residents. Other poems like Jen Hofer's Resolve, catalog a day in the life of a local and capture the geography of her imagination: The liquid light liquefies everything it touches, which is everything, making the opposite of halos, which is the exact outline of things against their backdrop of sky or wall of tree, Hofer reveals.

The book's hundreds of poems capture the native and the immigrant (and so-called immigrants who are actually natives), the queer and straight, women and men, young and old, humanity in all its colors, voices, and fluidity. In poem after poem, the electromagnetic spectrum that is Los Angeles is revealed again and again. The angels here/have pigeon's wings/blue collars/washed in sweat/the common salt/in tears/tongues swirl/in a stew of cultures/singing asphalt songs/in the mist of seagulls, laments Kamau Daaood in his poem, Los Angeles. The asphalt songs swirling from Los Angeles's stew of cultures make truly melodious music in the Coiled Serpent.
LINK: https://www.kcet.org/shows/departures/coiled-serpent-poems-that-protec...
See more stories from kcet

Most recent headlines

06/10/2025

France Tlvisions Wins Prestigious 2025 EBU Technology & Innovation Award in Groundbreaking Collaboration with Dalet

France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...

04/09/2025

Monumental Sports & Entertainment and Dalet Win Prestigious 2025 NAB Show Project of the Year Award

Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...

01/07/2025

COW Job Listing: Laser Engraved Logo

COW Job Listing: Laser Engraved Logo Brie Clayton July 1, 2025 0 Comments Laser engraved logo July 1, 2025Steffie Beltt's Mi Amor Music Video Cr...

01/07/2025

LeGrow.Studio Builds Broadcast Hub for ePro League

LeGrow.Studio Builds Broadcast Hub for ePro League Brie Clayton July 1, 2025 0 Comments TEM Constellation HD and BlackmagicURSA Broadcast G2 drive liv...

01/07/2025

Beeble launches SwitchLight 2.0, bringing AI-powered relighting to any footage

Beeble launches SwitchLight 2.0, bringing AI-powered relighting to any footage Brie Clayton July 1, 2025 0 Comments New AI model delivers full-scene p...

01/07/2025

Steffie Beltt's Mi Amor Music Video Created with Blackmagic Design

Steffie Beltt's Mi Amor Music Video Created with Blackmagic Design Brie Clayton July 1, 2025 0 Comments Blackmagic PYXIS 6K digital film camera...

01/07/2025

Sinclair Pays $500,000 to Settle FCC Investigations

WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission's Enforcement and Media Bureaus have entered into a consent decree with Sinclair to resolve a variety of in...

01/07/2025

LPTV Broadcasters Association to Hold Webinar on Station Sales

DENVER Low-power television (LPTV) station owners looking to navigate the complexities of selling their assets in todays dynamic media environment are invited t...

01/07/2025

Netflix to Carry Live Programming from NASA+

NASA announced today that live programming from its NASA+ channel will be available on Netflix starting sometime this summer....

01/07/2025

FCC Chair Carr Hires Katie McAuliffe as Policy Advisor

WASHINGTON Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr has appointed Katie McAuliffe to serve as policy advisor in his office....

01/07/2025

GFiber Demonstrates Network Slicing to Improve Home Internet Performance

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. Alphabet's GFiber pay TV and broadband provider has announced that it recently worked with Nokia to demonstrate network slicing....

01/07/2025

DoubleVerify Debuts Attention Measurement for Social Media

NEW YORK, N.Y. DoubleVerify (DV) has announced the launch of DV Authentic Attention for Social. The product will first launch with Snap, the owner of Snapchat....

01/07/2025

FCC Rejects License Challenges to Three Baltimore TV Stations

WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has rejected license challenges to three full-power Baltimore TV stations and agreed to renew the license for C...

01/07/2025

Magewell Brings NDI into Conferencing Software and More w...

Compact new converter lets users capture live NDI and streaming sources into software over a USB interface Video interface and IP workflow innovator Magewell ...

01/07/2025

Disneys Hercules Brings Mosaic Visuals To Life On Stage W...

Disguise, the award-winning tech company driving visuals for Broadway and West End hits including Redwood, Stranger Things: The First Shadow and Disney's Fr...

01/07/2025

KIT Plugins release NOIZ One Vox

Vocal-processing plug-in joins NOIZ Hub series Launched in 2024, KIT Plugins' NOIZ Hub series was created with the aim of providing a range of professio...

01/07/2025

7 Day Mastering: New course from Mastering.com

New self-paced learning programme announced Mastering.com have announced the availability of a new online course designed to cover the fundamentals of maste...

01/07/2025

Heather Gray Named Vice President and General Manager of WRAL and FOX 50

Historic appointment ushers in unified leadership for WRAL-TV, New Media, and Digital Solutions RALEIGH, N.C. - 6-27-25 - Capitol Broadcasting Company is prou...

01/07/2025

RT is Supporting 26 Arts and Cultural Events across Ireland this July

This July, RT is delighted to support Galway International Arts Festival, Earagail Arts Festival in Donegal, Belfast TradFest and 23 other arts and cultural ev...

01/07/2025

How AI Factories Can Help Relieve Grid Stress

In many parts of the world, including major technology hubs in the U.S., there's a yearslong wait for AI factories to come online, pending the buildout of n...

30/06/2025

Discover Weekly Turns 10: Celebrating 100 Billion+ Tracks Streamed and a Decade of Personalized Discovery

There's nothing quite like the magic of finding music that feels made just f...

30/06/2025

Spotify's Editors Pick Their Best Songs of the Year (So Far)

When it comes to new music, Spotify's team of editors across North America is always on the hunt for songs that make them feel, think, and move. They're...

30/06/2025

SBS On Demand boosts global news offering with launch of France 24 FAST Channel

SBS On Demand boosts global news offering with launch of France 24 FAST Channel 30 June, 2025 Media releases SBS is expanding its international news offeri...

30/06/2025

The Forsytes Season 2 Commissioned by MASTERPIECE on PBS

Star Studded Ensemble Cast Are Joined by Richard Rankin as Filming Begins on the Second Season [June 12, 2025 - Boston, MA]: The Forsytes, Debbie Horsfield...

30/06/2025

Artemis II Mission Advances with Successful RS-25 Engine Checkout Tests

The Artemis II Space Launch System core stage is integrated with the solid rocket boosters inside High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy S...

30/06/2025

WRAL-WRAZ Raleigh Names Heather Gray as VP and GM

RALEIGH, N.C. Capitol Broadcasting Co. has named Heather Gray vice president and general manager of WRAL-TV and WRAZ-TV here....

30/06/2025

VAB Awards JJ Freeman Engineering Award to Bill Sewell of WTKR/WGNT

The Virginia Association of Broadcasters has recognized Bill Sewell, Director of Engineering at WTKR & WGNT in Norfolk, Va. as the recipient of the 2025 J.J. Fr...

30/06/2025

SBE Recruits 49 New Members

The Society of Broadcast Engineers said its annual member drive resulted in the recruitment of 49 individual members....

30/06/2025

Avid Releases Full Integration of MediaCentral, Wolftech News

BURLINGTON, Mass. Avid today released its fully integrated news platform, uniting MediaCentral and Wolftech News in a single newsroom solution, and will demonst...

30/06/2025

FCC Fines Sinclair $500,000

WASHINGTON The Federal Communication's Enforcement and Media Bureaus have entered into a Consent Decree with Sinclair Broadcast Group to resolve a variety o...

30/06/2025

Qu-Bit announce the Bloom v2

Eurorack sequencer module reimagined California-based modular synth innovators Qu-Bit have announced the launch of a new module that offers a fresh new take...

30/06/2025

Berklee at Umbria Jazz Clinics to Host 40th Anniversary Concert

Berklee at Umbria Jazz Clinics to Host 40th Anniversary Concert The celebration will be held on July 10 in Perugia, Italy. By Colette Greenstein June 30, 202...

30/06/2025

PremiumBeat Tips and Tricks

PremiumBeat Tips and Tricks Brie Clayton June 30, 2025 0 Comments When editing to impress, you'll need quality music, and if your studio happens t...

30/06/2025

Techivation launch T-De-Esser Pro Mk2

Improved dynamic behaviour, improved audio quality & more Techivation have announced the release of an upgraded edition of their very first premium plug-in,...

30/06/2025

German premiere with live flight demonstration: German industry team showcases electromagnetic combat from the air

German premiere with live flight demonstration: German industry team showcases e...

30/06/2025

Beln Cuesta and Karra Elejalde Star in 'El nio', the New Film by Mariano Barroso

Back to All News Bel n Cuesta and Karra Elejalde Star in El ni o, the New Film ...

30/06/2025

A New Dangerous Troll Awakens: Netflix Unleashes Teaser for 'Troll 2'

Back to All News A New Dangerous Troll Awakens: Netflix Unleashes Teaser for Troll 2Play Video Play Video Entertainment 30 June 2025 GlobalNorwayDenmarkSwe...

30/06/2025

The Focusrite Summer Sale is now on

The Focusrite Summer Sale is now on Don't miss unbeatable deals on Scarlett, Vocaster, and more. Whether you're an artist, a producer, or a podcaste...

30/06/2025

Yellowstone origin story 1923 starring Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren comes to RT One and RT Player

All 8 episodes of Season 1 of 1923 will be available on RT Player from Tuesday ...

30/06/2025

Thales 2025 Global Cloud Security Study Reveals Organizations Struggle to Secure Expanding, AI-Driven Cloud Environments

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn 52% report AI security spending is displacing tr...

30/06/2025

Thales Alenia Space to develop SOLiS very-high-throughput laser communications demonstrator

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Cannes, June 30th, 2025 - Thales Alenia Space, t...

29/06/2025

Roland introduce the Mood Pan

Handpan-inspired instrument announced Roland have announced the launch of the Mood Pan, a unique electronic hand percussion instrument that has been designe...

29/06/2025

A Secret Society, Ritualistic Killings, and a Century-Old Curse Netflix and YRF Entertainment's 'Mandala Murders' Premieres July 25

Back to All News A Secret Society, Ritualistic Killings, and a Century-Old Curs...

28/06/2025

Press Release: NFVF Marks Youth Month by Empowering Future Creatives Through Film & TV Bursaries

Johannesburg, 27 June 2025 - As the nation commemorates Youth Month 2025, the N...

28/06/2025

FCC Chair Brendan Carr Promises Very, Very Busy, Productive Summer

WASHINGTON In a press conference following the Federal Communications Commission's May Open Meeting, Chair Brendan Carr promised the agency would move rapid...

28/06/2025

Spectrum Awards $1.1 Million in 2025 Spectrum Digital Education Grants

STAMFORD, Conn. Charter Communications has awarded $1.1 million in Spectrum Digital Education grants to 55 nonprofit organizations that work to expand access to...

28/06/2025

Sonnet Announces Echo 20 Thunderbolt 4 SuperDock Now Veri...

LAKE FOREST, Calif. June 19, 2025 What's New: Sonnet Technologies today announced the certification of its Echo 20 Thunderbolt 4 SuperDock as an Engin...

28/06/2025

IDC Names MASV One of Three Most Innovative Companies in...

MASV (massive.io), the fastest and most reliable large file transfer platform for media professionals, has been named an IDC Innovator in the IDC Innovators: Me...

28/06/2025

TV SKYLINE Expands Live Production Capabilities with Late...

Grass Valley today announced that TV SKYLINE GmbH, one of Europe's top mobile production providers, has expanded its camera inventory with 30 LDX 135 UHD/HD...

28/06/2025

AgileTV has been selected to develop and implement LIWEST...

AgileTV, a European leader in TV and video technology solutions, signed an agreement with Austrian telco LIWEST to develop and implement its TV service in Austr...