A Critical Community Praxis on Meaning and Identity
Queer Rican Event at NMPRAC
On Saturday, October 22, Lawrence La Fountain, Puerto Rican author, performer, and academic Lawrence La Fountain spoke at the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture, to an audience of over 75, about his book, “Queer Ricans.”
Lawrence spoke to his identification as a young gay man in Puerto Rico, overcoming obstacles and fear, and along the way becoming grounded in his identity. He touched on many different issues, among them the Puerto Rican fiscal crisis, the Puerto Rican Diaspora, LatinX identity and freedom for Puerto Rican political prisoner Oscar Lopez Rivera. Emmanuel Garcia, activist and journalist, led the Q and A session, fielding questions from the audience and where possible, connecting them to the larger issues discussed.
Emmanuel also led a Panel discussion with Humboldt Park neighborhood teens on LatinX life. Suzy Schultz of Public Narrative, also led an Audience Storytelling workshop that integrated audience personal stories into the broader themes touched by La Fountain.
The event was part of “Home is Where the Art Is” — a collaborative effort of the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture, the Great Books Foundation, the Chicago Cultural Alliance, and Public Narrative, supported in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.
