UNT Alum, Joaquín Zihuatanejo, is a poet, spoken word artist, and award-winning teacher. Born and raised in the barrio of East Dallas, in his work Joaquín strives to capture the duality of the Chicano culture. Sometimes brutal, but always honest his work depicts the essence of barrio life, writing about a youth that existed somewhere between the streets of the barrio and the dream wanderings of a boy who found refuge in a world of stories and poems.

Zihuatanejo joined the 2017 Equity and Diversity Conference both as a workshop presenter and performer. Students had the opportunity to perform with Zihuatanejo via the “Social Justice: A Movement Not a Moment” Spoken Word Competition held the evening of the conference from 6 p.m. – 7 p.m.