[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 8]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 11787]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      HONORING JUAN FELIPE HERRERA

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. PETE AGUILAR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 16, 2015

  Mr. AGUILAR. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor Juan Felipe Herrera, 
the United States' newest poet laureate and the first Latino poet 
laureate. As the son of migrant farmworkers and as a Chicano civil 
rights movement activist, Mr. Herrera serves as an inspiration to 
Latino Americans everywhere. His poetry sheds light on the Mexican-
American experience and allows people of all generations and 
backgrounds to appreciate his artistry and history.
  Mr. Herrera was most recently the California poet laureate from 2012 
to 2014. He retired in March from the University of California, 
Riverside where he worked as a professor. Mr. Herrera was a Redlands 
resident and we are so honored and proud to have had him play a role in 
the Inland Empire community. He brought our community into his world, 
engaging Redlands residents in his state project ``The Most Incredible 
& Biggest Poem on Unity in the World.'' The 170-page poem included 
submissions from hundreds of people across the state, including those 
in the Inland Empire.
  Today we thank Mr. Herrera for sharing his gift with all of us and 
for giving Latino Americans a voice in the world of poetry. We are so 
proud of what he has accomplished and commend him on the distinguished 
honor of being the poet laureate of the United States, and the first 
Latino poet laureate in American history.

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