Yael Valencia Aldana has been awarded the 2024 Pushcart Prize for the poem “Black Person Head Bob,” which will be featured in the 2024 edition of Pushcart Prize XLIX: Best of the Small Presses. The winning poem, originally published in Torch Magazine in June 2023, addresses how Black people silently yet soulfully acknowledge and “see” each other.
“Black Person Head Bob” is one of the poems included in Aldana’s forthcoming book of poetry, Black Mestiza (January 2025, University Press of Kentucky).
Founded in 1976, The Pushcart Prize: Best of the Small Presses series is one of the most honored literary projects in America. Each year, literary magazines and small presses from around the globe nominate works of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction published during the previous year. From the thousands of nominees, only a small fraction receives a Pushcart Prize and is published in the annual volume.
“Honestly, I’m stunned,” said Aldana. “I am so grateful for this honor. It just shows you don’t give up on yourself or your work. This poem was so hard to place and received so many rejections, but I kept trying because I felt it was an important poem about a subtle aspect in the Black community. I decided to send the poem out one more time to Torch Literary Arts before I shelved it, and they accepted it. I am so grateful to Torch and Pushcart for amplifying this poem and giving it a platform.”
In Black Mestiza, Aldana reckons with her identity as a Caribbean Afro-Latinx woman with Indigenous, Black, and white roots and pays homage to the legacy and fortitude of her ancestors. The powerful and prophetic collection is not only a testament to Aldana’s deep-rooted connection to her heritage, but a compelling celebration and expression of pride, recognition, and a profound sense of community.
Yael Valencia Aldana is an Afro-Latinx poet and writer. Yael, her mother, her mother’s mother, and so on are descendants of the indigenous people of modern-day Colombia.She earned her MFA in creative writing from Florida International University and is also the author of the chapbook Alien(s). Her work has appeared in Literary Mama and Slag Glass City, among others. She teaches creative writing in South Florida and lives near the ocean with her son and too many pets. You can find her online at YaelAldana.com.
