User:LanitaDelRey1/Javier Zamora

Javier Zamora

Javier Zamora (born 1990) is a Salvadoran poet and activist.

Early life

Zamora was born in San Luis La Herradura, El Salvador and illegally immigrated to the United States at the age of nine, joining his parents in California.

Education

He earned a BA at the University of California, Berkeley and an MFA at New York University and was a 2016–2018 Wallace Stegner Fellow at Stanford University.

Career

Zamora's chapbook Nueve Años Inmigrantes/Nine Immigrant Years won the 2011 Organic Weapon Arts Contest, and his first poetry collection, Unaccompanied, was published in 2017 by Copper Canyon Press. His poetry can be found in The American Poetry Review, Best New Poets 2013, Kenyon Review, Narrative Magazine, The New Republic, The New York Times, Ploughshares, and Poetry.

The poetry book Unaccompanied by Javier Zamora provides a moving and intimate viewpoint on the experience of migration and the difficulties unaccompanied Central American children have when crossing the border between the United States and Mexico. Zamora explores ideas of identity, belonging, and the pursuit of home using strong and vivid language. These young refugees' experiences are made relatable and understandable with the poems' vivid imagery and poetic approach. The book transports readers through the emotional landscapes of migration while illuminating the struggles endured by people looking for a better life. The poems become more real and emotionally resonant due to Zamora's personal connection to the subject matter, which also provides a counternarrative and humanizes the experiences of unaccompanied children. Unaccompanied poses significant queries regarding immigration laws, human rights, and the effects of boundaries on people and families. Zamora's contribution to Unaccompanied has won several awards and praise. The collection won the Northern California Book Award 2018 and was a finalist for the 2018 Kate Tufts Discovery Award. The Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship is one of the many literary honors bestowed to Zamora.

Honors

Zamora's honors include Barnes & Noble Writer for Writer's Award (2016), Meridian Editors’ Prize, and the Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship from the Poetry Foundation. Zamora has received fellowships from the Bread Loaf Writers' Conference, CantoMundo, Colgate University, The Frost Place, MacDowell Colony, the Macondo Writers Workshop, the Napa Valley Writers' Conference, the National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellowship in Creative Writing, and Yaddo. In 2017, Zamora was awarded the Narrative Prize for "Sonoran Song," "To the President-Elect," and "Thoughts on the Anniversary of My Crossing the Sonoran Desert". In 2023 he received a PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award for Solito: A Memoir.

Activism

Zamora was a founder, with poets Marcelo Hernandez Castillo and Christopher Soto (AKA Loma), of the Undocupoets campaign which eliminated citizenship requirements from major first poetry book prizes in the United States.

Solito

Solito is a memoir recounting the journey of nine-year-old Javier Zamora, as he migrated alone from El Salvador to the United States in 1999 to reunite with his parents. Javier traveled through Guatemala, Mexico and the Sonoran Desert. Javier is guided by coyotes, human smugglers, and is accompanied by other migrants.

The memoir captures the emotional and physical challenge of migration through the eyes of a child, bringing up themes of hope, solidarity, and resilience. Solito recounts the realities of migration while reflecting the human experience of seeking safety and a sense of belonging. Throughout the journey, Javier forms bonds with Patricia, Carla, and Chino, who helped care for and guide him through the dangerous moments. Despite several failed attempts to cross the U.S. Javier and the others endured harsh terrain, extreme weather, detentions by immigration authorities, encounters with corrupt officials, detentions by immigration authorities, encounters with corrupt officials, and scarcity of resources. Eventually, Javier managed to cross the U.S. border successfully where he was able to reunite with his parents. Solito provides a  powerful and in-depth portrayal of the challenges of migration and the resilience required to overcome them.

Books

• (2012). Nueve Años Immigrantes/Nine Immigrant Years. Organic Weapon Arts. ISBN 9780982710616.
• (2017). Unaccompanied. Copper Canyon Press. ISBN 9781556595110.
• (2022). Solito: A Memoir. Hogarth Books. ISBN 9780593498064.

In anthologies

• (2018). "Various Poems". In Melissa Tuckey (ed.). Ghost Fishing: An Eco-Justice Poetry Anthology. University of Georgia Press. ISBN 9780820353159.

References

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External links

• Poetry and Profile at Poetry Foundation website
• Profile at Poets & Writers magazine
• "Sonoran Song and Other Poems" at Narrative Magazine.
• Appearances on C-SPAN