Juan Manuel Pérez
Juan Manuel Pérez, a Mexican-American poet of indigenous descent and the current Poet Laureate for Corpus Christi, Texas (2019-2020), is the author of Another Menudo Sunday (2007), O' Dark Heaven: A Response to Suzette Haden Elgin's Definition of Horror (2009), WUI: Written Under the Influence of Trinidad Sanchez, Jr. (2011), Live From La Pryor: The Poetry of Juan Manuel Perez: A Zavala Country Native Son, Volume 1 (2014), Sex, Lies, and Chupacabras (2015), Space In Pieces (2020), and Screw The Wall! And Other Brown People Poems (2020), as well as, the co-editor of The Call Of The Chupacabra (2018). He is the 2011-2012 San Antonio Poets Association Poet Laureate and the Lone Star State's only EL Chupacabras Poet Laureate (For Life). The former Gourd Dancer for the Memphis Tia Piah Big River Clan Warrior Society is also a Pushcart Prize Nominee as well as a SEATTAH Scholar (Striving For Excellence And Accountability In The Teaching Of Traditional American History) through the University Of Dallas.
Juan is a ten-year Navy Corpsman/ Combat Marine Medic with experience in the 1991 Persian Gulf War (Operations Desert Shield, Desert Storm, and Desert Calm) with the 2nd Marines and the 1992 Hurricane Andrew Relief Marine Air Group Task Force. This two-time Teacher of the Year, along with his wife, Malia (a three-time Teacher of the Year), is a co-founder of The House of the Fighting Chupacabras Press. The former migrant field worker previously from La Pryor, currently worships his Creator, teaches public high school history, writes poetry, and chases chupacabras in the Texas Coastal Bend Area.
His official website is https://juanmperez.weebly.com/.
Screw the Wall! And Other Brown People Poems is a point-driving, brotherly-love, poetic view into the human issues that affect Brown People about co-existing with other people in the Americas, especially those who recently arrived within the last 500 years. From pre-Hispanics/pre-Columbian/Indigenous descendants to mid-last century Chicanos and Civil Rights leaders, to whatever current choice of definition they select to call themselves today, THEY are all Brown People! This book is for them and about them, as well as it is for you and about you. Especially YOU, on the cusp of trying to understand what it is to be a hyphenated American.
It is also for YOU, always ranting about a “birthright” that belongs to ALL humans and not just your kind or your skin color. Let all the words in this book make you laugh, happy, sad, nostalgic, or make you question, angry, and even hate… the ideas you had before about people of other cultures, especially those constantly at the forefront of making sure they are the solid-working foundation of great civilizations.
Screw your walls, your borders, your angry, hateful speech, your racist views, and learn to really screw, or rather love, in peace, existence, and understanding of all the cultures that surround you, especially those who were here on this side of the world long before. No doubt, this modern indigenous poet’s words will set your heart on fire one way or another. Get this book and find out how.