Via Wikimedia Commons
Pedro Pietri
1944–2004
Nuyorican poet, author of 'Puerto Rican Obituary,' co-founder of the Nuyorican Poets Café
Pedro Pietri (1944-2004) was a Nuyorican poet whose epic poem "Puerto Rican Obituary" (1973) became one of the foundational texts of Puerto Rican diaspora literature. Born in Ponce, Puerto Rico, he grew up in New York City and served in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War.
"Puerto Rican Obituary" chronicled the lives of five Puerto Ricans — Juan, Miguel, Milagros, Olga, and Manuel — who "died dreaming of America" while working dead-end jobs, paying rent they couldn't afford, and losing their identity in pursuit of a dream that excluded them. The poem's final stanzas call for a return to Puerto Rican identity and self-determination.
Pietri was also the self-proclaimed "Reverend" of the Church of the Mother of Tomatoes, a satirical institution that expressed his absurdist humor and rejection of institutional authority. He was a regular performer at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe and a mentor to generations of Latino writers.