I am shocked and troubled that the newly organized Santa Barbara Literary Festival includes almost no Latino writers even though Latinos constitute almost 40 percent of Santa Barbara residents. Only one writer, Lisa Alvarez, is a Latina writer who writes on Latinos. The majority of Latinos here are second- and third-generation residents who speak and read in English.
For over 20 years I have organized the successful Luis Leal Award for Distinction in Chicano/Latino Literature at UCSB with some outstanding Latino writers. I hope this exclusion by the Festival will be corrected next year.
S.B. LitFest replied: We are proud of the diverse lineup of authors who participated in the inaugural SBLF, including Lisa Alvarez, Rose Wilde, Romina Garber, and Dez Alaniz, director of the Presidio Research Center. We invited numerous Latino authors and poets from our community who ultimately could not participate due to other commitments; however, they are interested in participating next year and we hope that the letter writer will be also.
—Leslie Zemeckis, S.B. Literary Festival
