The Playful "i" in Tato Laviera's Poetry: An Arte poética

The notion of belonging to a broader cultural landscape becomes obvious in the writer's intentions to offer a poetry that is accessible to the people, while at the same time tackling fundamental identity crossroads pertaining to social status, race and ethnicity, cultural heritage, and language. Attuned to the goal of accessibility, Laviera's poetry is decidedly oral in form, whereas in content it is devoted to the language and circumstances of what he calls "his people" and their everyday experiences.