Juan Antonio Corretjer

Juan Antonio Corretjer (born March 3, 1908 in Ciales , Puerto Rico , † January 19, 1985 in San Juan , Puerto Rico) was a Puerto Rican poet , journalist and political activist.

Life

His father and uncle were involved in the Ciales uprising against the occupation of the United States on August 13, 1898. As a teenager he often accompanied his father to political meetings.

While still in elementary school, he joined the Literary Society of Jose Gautier Benitez , which was later renamed Nationalist Youth . In the eighth grade he organized a protest against American dominance in his city, whereupon he was expelled from school and was no longer allowed to attend school in the Ciales community. That's why he went to school in Vega Baja .

At the age of twelve Corretjer wrote his first poem Canto a Ciales (Song for Ciales) in 1920 and in 1924 he published his first volume of poetry. In 1927 he worked as a journalist for various newspapers and publications in Puerto Rico, Cuba and the USA.

In 1935 he traveled to Cuba, where he joined a group that wanted to overthrow the dictator Fulgencio Batista . He also campaigned for international support for the Puerto Rican independence movement in Haiti and the Dominican Republic .

In 1936 he befriended the nationalist leader Pedro Albizu Campos and shortly thereafter was appointed general secretary of the Puerto Rico nationalist party. In 1937, 1947 and 1950 he was arrested for his political views.

Corretjer is considered one of the greatest Puerto Rican poets of the 1930s. The love for his country served as inspiration for his poems and essays.

Works

Poems

• Agüeybaná (1932)
• Amor a Puerto Rico (1937)
• Cantico de Guerra (1937)
• El Leñero (1944)
• Tierra Nativa (1951)
• Yerba Bruja (1957)

Essays

• Llorens
• Juicio Historico
• La Revolucion de Lares (see Grito de Lares )
• Nuestra Bandera

Web links

• Puerto Rican Cultural Center (English)