Julia de Burgos
1914–1953
Puerto Rico's greatest poet, feminist, and independence advocate whose work transcended literary boundaries
Julia de Burgos was one of the greatest poets in Latin American literature, whose work engages themes of feminism, identity, social justice, and the natural world. The eldest of thirteen children in a poor family, she served as Secretary General of the Daughters of Freedom, the women's branch of the Nationalist Party. Her major collections include "Poema en veinte surcos" (1938) and "Canción de la verdad sencilla" (1939). She died at age 39 on a Harlem street.