Jesús Papoleto Meléndez, also known as "Papo", or "Papoleto", (born June 13, 1950) is a New York-born Puerto Rican poet, playwright, teacher, and activist. He is a member of the Nuyorican Movement. He grew up during the

Civil Rights Movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...

, Black Power movement, and the emergence of the Nuyorican Movement in East Harlem. His titles include the play ''The Junkies Stole the Clock (1974),'' and ''Hey Yo/Yo Soy! 40 Years of Nuyorican Street Poetry.''

Personal life

Meléndez's upbringing had a large influence on his work. Living in East Harlem, much of his experiences came from the influence his Southern African-American friends from the same area had on him. Meléndez was a close friend of

Pedro Pietri Pedro Pietri (March 21, 1944 – March 3, 2004) was a Nuyorican poet and playwright and one of the co-founders of the Nuyorican Movement. He was considered by some as the poet laureate of the Nuyorican Movement. Early years Pietri was born i ...

, with whom he collaborated on a variety of projects. They started a group together known as the Latin Insomniacs Motorcycle Club Without Motorcycles with which he organized the first South Bronx

Surrealist Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to ...

Festival. Meléndez has been working in public schools as a teacher, introducing poetry for over 30 years, both in California and in New York.

Poetry

Meléndez started writing poetry because he lacked the ability to draw. Meléndez cites poets like

Lawrence Ferlinghetti Lawrence Monsanto Ferlinghetti (March 24, 1919 – February 22, 2021) was an American poet, painter, social activist, and co-founder of City Lights Booksellers & Publishers. The author of poetry, translations, fiction, theatre, art criticism, an ...

, who felt strongly that art should be accessible to all people, not just a handful of highly educated intellectuals, as a major influence. They also share common techniques such as cascadence, where the poems seem to jump off the page. Meléndez cites early cartoons as one of his influences due to their use of imagery and exaggeration. When Meléndez moved to the West Coast in his early years, he started a

jazz poetry Jazz poetry has been defined as poetry that "demonstrates jazz-like rhythm or the feel of improvisation" and also as poetry that takes jazz music, musicians, or the jazz milieu as its subject. Some critics consider it a distinct genre though others ...

band in California named Exile Genius with Eugene Mingus and M'chaka Uba.

Nuyorican Poets Cafe

Along with many other poets such as

Miguel Algarín Miguel Algarín Jr. (11 September 1941 – 30 November 2020) was a Puerto Rican poet, writer, co-founder of the Nuyorican Poets Café, and a Rutgers University professor of English. Early years Algarín was born in Santurce, Puerto Rico, and ...

, Richard August, Jorge Brandon,

, and others, Meléndez helped found the

Nuyorican Poets Café The Nuyorican (Puerto Rican New Yorkers) Poets Cafe is a nonprofit organization in Alphabet City, on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. It is a bastion of the Nuyorican art movement in New York City, and has become a forum for poetry, music, hip ...

, which helped serve as a platform for many influential works spanning from literature, music, plays, and much more.

Books and collections

Meléndez has published collections that include his work as a Nuyorican poet.

Awards

To date, Meléndez has received the Artist for Community Enrichment Award (ACE) from the

Bronx Council on the Arts The Bronx Council on the Arts (established 1962), is an art based culture agency that has grown to become the official cultural agency of the Bronx, New York City. It provides a “lifeline” to more than 4,800 artists and over 250 arts and comm ...

in 1995,

New York Foundation for the Arts The New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) is an independent 501(c)(3) charity, funded through government, foundation, corporate, and individual support, established in 1971. It is part of a network of national not-for-profit arts organizations ...

Fellowship in Poetry in 2001, The Louis Reyes Rivera Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004, the Universes Poetic Ensemble Company Award in Appreciation of Inspiration & Commitment to the Development of the Company and the 1st Annual "El Reverendo Pedro Pietri Hand Award" in poetry in 2006, and the

Union Settlement Association Union Settlement is one of the oldest settlement houses in New York City, providing community-based services and programs that support the immigrant and low-income residents of East Harlem since 1895. It is East Harlem’s largest social service ...

"Innovation Award" in 2011.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Papoleto Melendez, Jesus 1950 births Writers from Manhattan 20th-century American poets 21st-century American poets 21st-century Puerto Rican poets Poets from New York (state) American male poets 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights Puerto Rican dramatists and playwrights People from East Harlem Living people Hispanic and Latino American teachers 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers