Nephtali De Leon Named San Antonio's Sixth Poet Laureate

San Antonio has selected Nephtali De León to be its sixth poet laureate.

De León is a writer, poet and artist.

“I feel very honored and very privileged that this city would consider me with my nonacademic background,” said De León.

The city said his high writing output and work in the community, as well as his Texas roots that range across the state were among the reasons he was selected.

“I was raised in South Texas. Born in Laredo, Texas, but did not grow up there. I'm basically a migrant worker,” he explained. “That's really my true background. [I've] picked everything you can imagine — chiles, tomatoes, lettuce, oranges, cantaloupes.”

He also spent 17 years in Lubbock, where he helped with the first bilingual newspaper. He also opened a theater. His past as a migrant worker inspired his writing.

“It hurts me too — to my soul — to see us being treated so roughly and unkindly — called 'aliens,' as if we were from another planet; called 'illegal,' as if being human is illegal,”

De León said as he reflected on his treatment as a migrant worker. He said he was not interested in drawing lines between people. He wants to bring people together.

“I realized that we cannot carry a chip on our shoulders, and we cannot be bitter about whatever life hands us, but rather we must seek to seek the most hopeful, sweeter ways to be humans together,” he said.

“I am so hopeful and joyful that now poetry is something every day that is common and wonderful to all of us as a taco or tortilla that we enjoy every day,” De Leon added.

A ceremony at City Hall on April 10 will celebrate his selection.

Congratulations from Latino Lubbock Magazine!