Casa de las Americas mourns the death of Ernesto Cardenal

Havana, March 1 (RHC)— Abel Prieto, President of Casa de las Americas,  wrote on twitter that Our America has suffered an immeasurable loss with the death of Ernesto Cardenal, one of its greatest poets.

Prieto also recalled that Ernesto Cardenal’s bond with Cuba and Casa de las Americas was intimate, fraternal and will always remain so.   The Nicaraguan priest, poet, and revolutionary died in Managua on Sunday. He was 95.

He became a symbol of revolutionary verse in Nicaragua and around Latin America and was suspended from the priesthood by St. John Paul II for his adherence to liberation theology and political activism.

Known for his trademark black beret and loose white peasant shirts, the author of works such as "Epigrams" and "Zero Hour" was one of the most important and honored poets in Nicaraguan history.

Cardenal penned verse that went around the globe, and lived until his last days with a lucidity that inspired amazement and admiration.

Edited by Jorge Ruiz Miyares