During this one-day retreat, we will explore poets who have not only bore witness to injustice, but who have done so from a place of hope and resistance. We will then build a “portfolio” of their own work to sustain and nourish our vision and activism in these times. Students are invited to participate in a reading and open mic featuring Demetria Martínez and Dr. Norma Cantú the following day.

DATES: Friday, October 2, 2026 10:00am - 3:00pm CT, In-person at Gemini Ink

COST: Nonmember $125; Member $108; Student $88

REGISTER: https://geminiink.org/events/poetry-in-dangerous-times-with-demetria-martinez-dr-norma-e-cantu/

Demetria Martínez is a poet, writer and immigrant rights activist born and raised in Albuquerque. Her most recent book, Poetry in Dangerous Times: Two Women, Two Worlds, was coauthored with Susan Sherman and published by Casa Urraca Press. Martínez’s other books include the widely translated novel, Mother Tongue (Ballantine). She is the recipient of a Luis Leal Award for Distinction in Chicano/Latino Literature, an American Book Award, and an International Latino Book Award.

Former AFS President, award winning poet and author, Dr. Norma Elia Cantú currently serves as the Norine R. and T. Frank Murchison Distinguished Professor of the Humanities at Trinity University in San Antonio, where she teaches courses in Latinx Studies, Folklore, and Creative Writing. Her creative writing focuses on the US-Mexico Border and includes her novels Canícula and Cabañuelas as well as a poetry collection, Meditación fronteriza.