
QUEENS
Queens County is on DL
all the time
all the way
young anxiety between the alleys
after the job, under the shadow of WhatsApp
the poor young and Spanish-speaking newcomer will jump Manhattan will avoid Brooklyn just will be Queen not princess not count just queen
The Queen of the Damned!!!
Queens is queer es cuir es kuir
I learnt to say luv instead amor en Queens
and then,
drama queenz: I left you sleeping while the night was on fire
because my undocumented heart was being chased
The fable states: it was a small house in Queens where blatino boys use to gather and have sex / no clothes allowed / just leave your sneakers and cap and jewelry / no drugs no alcohol / remember your number / if not, use your email / at 5 everything ends / it’s 15 bucks, thanks / and those were the days
anyway,
If you are from Queens
or if you lived there
or if you left Queens because you started to hate it
or if you just stayed in Queens for a month waiting for a new job in another place
or whatever the reason was that made you say queens
I must say:
I luv you
just because you have smelled Queens: I luv you
just because some inches of your body have been on Queens: I luv you
just because you walked the streets that my luv strolls every night: I luv you
whenever you are
wherever you are
I luv you
with all
my weakness

Rodrigo Arenas-Carter
Visual artist, writer, educator and researcher. Latin-american, bilingual and immigrant. Focused on performance art, digital art, poetry and essays, they have wandered through the continent sharing their work. Responsible for several writings, including "The Vital Scarcity. Poetry and Performance Art in Latin-America and Chile." Member of Colectivo Cuirpoétikas (Guatemala), RACA and Forma y Sustancia Performance Art Festival. More info at