David Escobar Galindo

Art will clash with politics today when Los Angeles Festival organizers meet with representatives of Los Angeles' Salvadoran community, who are concerned that a Salvadoran poet with links to that Central American nation's government may be the only poet speaking for El Salvador at the festival.

Galindo: A No-Show Salvadoran poet David Escobar Galindo, who was to have read in the festival's "La Terra Nova 1990: Pacific Poetry Festival" today, will not appear in the program. "He canceled--I was sick. It was shocking," said Florinda Mintz, co-curator of the event. Galindo's selection for the festival caused much furor in the local Salvadoran community last month. After much discussion, the festival added a leftist poet to the program to balance with Galindo's alleged right-wing politics.

In an 11th-hour decision, the Los Angeles Festival has added Salvadoran poet Alfonso Quijada Urias to its program. The move came in response to protests from a local Latino artists group and members of the Salvadoran community over the appearance of Salvadoran poet David Escobar Galindo, who is believed to have ties to the Salvadoran government. Galindo is slated to appear as part of "La Terra Nova 1990: Pacific Poetry Festival."

In an 11th-hour decision, the Los Angeles Festival has added Salvadoran poet Alfonso Quijada Urias to its program. The move came in response to protests from a local Latino artists group and members of the Salvadoran community over the appearance of Salvadoran poet David Escobar Galindo, who is believed to have ties to the Salvadoran government. Galindo is slated to appear as part of "La Terra Nova 1990: Pacific Poetry Festival."

Galindo: A No-Show Salvadoran poet David Escobar Galindo, who was to have read in the festival's "La Terra Nova 1990: Pacific Poetry Festival" today, will not appear in the program. "He canceled--I was sick. It was shocking," said Florinda Mintz, co-curator of the event. Galindo's selection for the festival caused much furor in the local Salvadoran community last month. After much discussion, the festival added a leftist poet to the program to balance with Galindo's alleged right-wing politics.

Poetry in Motion: Following an outcry from Los Angeles' Salvadoran community over the planned appearance of Salvadoran poet David Escobar Galindo, who is said to have ties to the country's government, Los Angeles Festival officials agreed at a meeting Wednesday to create "another kind of event" to which another Salvadoran poet representing a different viewpoint will be invited.

No extra security precautions are planned at the UCLA campus' Artists Village when more than 450 participants from U.S., Asian, Latin-American and Pacific locales converge there Sept. 1-16 for the Los Angeles Festival. Despite the scheduled stays of performers from politically sensitive countries including Cambodia and El Salvador, everything will be "business as usual," according to campus officials.

La Terra Nova 1990--New World Poets, New World Visions continues today and Friday at Cal State Fullerton. The three-day program, designed to promote the spirit of global awareness and understanding, was organized by Cal State Fullerton in cooperation with 1990-1992 Orange County Festival of Discovery and the Orange County Christopher Columbus Quincentenary Jubilee Commission.

But the lords of darkness (the censors) said, "Let no one approach this tree. Let no one dare pick this fruit." And a girl whose name was Blood Girl knew this history. The maiden bravely asked, 'Why can't I know this tree's miracle?' And she jumped over the oppressor's words of warning and approached the tree. She approached the tree so that the myth could bring us together in its image. Because the woman is the freedom that provokes action. And the hero is the unhindered will."

His name was Salvador Salazar Arrue, or Salarrue for short, and he's the greatest Central American writer you've probably never heard of. Even here in his homeland, just a few years ago, nobody much was talking about Salarrue. Nobody, that is, except people like Ricardo Aguilar. "My relation to Salarrue and his family didn't stop, it doesn't stop, but I don't mind because he was a great man," says Aguilar, speaking of his late friend, artistic mentor and lifelong obsession.

Art will clash with politics today when Los Angeles Festival organizers meet with representatives of Los Angeles' Salvadoran community, who are concerned that a Salvadoran poet with links to that Central American nation's government may be the only poet speaking for El Salvador at the festival.

The master of ceremonies at a rally for right-wing presidential candidate Armando Calderon Sol was trying to warm up the placid crowd that had gathered here one recent Saturday morning. Peasants, farmers and market vendors stood under a searing sun to listen to the candidates for the front-running Nationalist Republican Alliance, or Arena, the government's party. "All those who support Arena, raise your hats!" the emcee implored the crowd. A few people lifted their hats.