She is a finalist of both the National Poetry Slam 2017 and the Women of the World Poetry Slam 2018. Aguilera comes from a mixed family of immigrants and uses spoken word to rewrite the narrative of what it means to be Mexican, woman, and American. Marte’s poetry explores many subjects including her roots and culture, intersectional feminism, and self-love.Īngelica Maria Aguilera is an international touring Chicana poet and teaching artist from the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles. Her debut collection of poetry, “MELA,” was released last year. Marte ranked 5th at the 2018 Women of The World Poetry Slam Competition, and was just recently a finalist at the 2018 Individual World Poetry Slam Competition in San Diego, California. Her work has also been featured in Dallas Morning News, Ain’t I Latina, Curated By Facebook, and People En Español. Her most viral poem “Afro-Latina” was featured by Instagram on their IG TV for National Poetry Month and has garnered over 9 million views. She has performed in universities and venues across the country. Her multi-cultured upbringing inspires her to write about navigating the world as a native Spanish speaker of Black Dominican descent. She was born in the Bronx and raised in the Lower East Side of New York City. Melania-Luisa Marte is a first generation American writer and performer.

Rutgers word mark