“Indeed, I’m Still Standing is not just an introduction and an overview of the trajectory of one of the most important Puerto Rican writers of the twenty-first century, a time-shifting experience of movement along the thirty years of poetic output, it is a chronicle of an era when women, especially lesbian Latina feminist academics were not welcome in the halls of academia and suffered the consequences of being the path breakers, the voices that would not be silenced. Academia has changed, but not enough. We are still in need of strong feminist voices that will not be silenced, that will not be erased. The publication of I’m Still Standing is proof of the power of poetry to attest to the indomitable spirit of those who resist erasure.”

Born and raised in Santurce, Puerto Rico in 1947, Luz María (Luzma) Umpierre-Herrera has risen from humble beginnings to become a foremost figure within contemporary Puerto Rican literature and culture. Umpierre’s most recent work is I’m Still Standing: Treinta años de poesía / Thirty Years of Poetry. This volume serves as a lasting proof of Umpierre’s dedication to her life’s work in the areas of poetry, immigration studies, LGBT advocacy, Caribbean, Latin American, and L@atino Studies. This compendium of poetry, essays and interviews is ingeniously edited by Daniel Torres and Carmen S. Rivera and contains an awe-inspiring interview conducted by Nemir Matos Cintron. However, the words that most vividly reverberate throughout the collection are those of the poet, scholar, human rights advocate and teacher herself, Luzma Umpierre. I’m Still Standing is a triumph and a treasure. She discusses with great candor not only her struggles, personal and public, but also how she used poetry to overcome adversity. An eternal activist and voice of the oppressed, Umpierre-Herrera’s work should be required reading in Spanish literature and Latin@ Studies programs. Her books should be part of every university library collection. (Taken from Feministas Unidas Blog)

The Blog came out of a suggestion by Nemir Matos Cintrón. She suggested that I develop each one in reference to how a particular book of poems of mine came about. With a great deal of trepidation because I had not written in so long, I began to follow her advise and developed the first essays. They were received positively (mostly by her ) so that created an incentive to continue. Then in 2011, I began to write consistently about contemporary issues. I have had the Blog which is called: Luzma Speaks, for two years.

My recently published cyber articles have dealt with day to day subject matters like: Rep. Gutierrez’s stance on police brutality in Puerto Rico; the need for solidarity among all Puerto Ricans, statewide and islanders, in the LGBT community after a public debate in 2010;Tyler Clementi and bullying; the students’ strike at UPR; and, I have also been busy writing biographical short articles dealing with my perspective as a Latina/Puerto Rican woman in academia, and publishing. I would love to turn these, eventually, into a book.