5 Latinx Poets Honor Their Mothers Through Spoken Word

In her poem “Accents,” award-winning poet Denice Frohman honors her mother’s melodious accent, describing it as a “sancocho of English and Spanish pushing up and against one another in rapid fire.”

Melissa Lozada-Oliva and Jonathan Mendoza's poem "Date My Mom!" hilariously questions whether any man can truly handle their loving, hardworking, sometimes eccentric mothers. "My mom's so independent, she doesn't even need to date you!" they explain. "That's how dateable my mom is!"

In her spoken word poem "Mami's Making Mambo," poet and performer Mayda Del Valle sings her mother's praises, honoring her culinary skills and general badassery. "It was there, in my mother's kitchen, that I learned more than just how to cook," she recites. "It's where I learned the essence of rhythm and power."

“Picture two hundred and seventy days. Two hundred and seventy days where bones lift and organs shift to make room in the womb for you and I, the future generation." Thus begins Oveous Maximus' spoken word poem "Dulce de Leche" -- an homage to the strength of women and mothers everywhere. "You can't reduce or water her down. Her leche's pure...Pure like my mother, for raising two boys -- single," he shares. "With two jobs, trying to make singles just to put food on the table."

In her aptly-named spoken word poem "Birth Mother," Mayra Duron relays a heartfelt message to the woman who gave her life but did not raise her. "If I could say one thing, it would be I love you," she recites. "And I want you to know that if you ever feared that I would be angry, I was. But now that has turned into appreciation."