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Enrique Jaramillo Levi and the Future of Writers in Panama

In December of 2007, an article by legendary Panamanian author Enrique Jaramillo Levi graced the Opinion section of La Prensa, Panama’s highest-circulated newspaper. The short essay, titled “Escritores Ante Nuevos Retos” or “Writers Facing New Challenges” was placed on my desk after a long day on the streets, being charming and trying to earn my keep by writing like only I can… someone thought it would be interesting to see how I would react to Levi’s thoughts on what lies in the future of Panamanian authors, especially since he was one of my teachers in several of my Creative Writing courses. Now, Enrique Jaramillo Levi really is a legend, the William Wallace of Panamanian culture and author extraordinaire. He’s one of the few Panamanian authors that is relentless in his output and hangs on to his relevance unlike any person I have ever seen. His perseverance is something that is greatly valued in the writing and culture communities because, quite frankly, if it weren’t for him Panama would be even worse in terms of cultural awareness. His perseverance though, and at least to me, is somewhat tainted by the repressed anger that seems to be below the surface in what he says.

This article, “Escritores Ante Nuevos Retos,” is subconsciously split into three parts, and also a great way of proving this snide slant constantly present in everything he says publicly. Jaramillo Levi is the founder and driving force of the Asociacion de Escritores de Panama (Panamanian Writers Association, or ADEP) created in late 2004, and even though he recently “retired” he’s still the mastermind behind many of the big projects this faction of Panamanian culture has. Having said that, the middle half of the article provides a laundry list of the many things the ADEP has done, and the list of accomplishments is admirable:

• With the help of the Panamanian Technological University (Universidad Tecnologica de Panama, UTP), the ADEP organized the first Central American Writers’ Congress or Congreso de Escritoras y Escritores de Centroamerica in 2005.
• Also in 2005, the ADEP Ramon H. Jurado Short Novel Contest was created. With a second edition in 2006.
• In 2006, along with the University of Panama, the ADEP organized the first National Writers, Readers and Critics Conference. A second edition of this conference was held in late 2007 as well.
• Since 2005, there’s a steady flow of events that celebrate the joy of reading, most of it pushed by the ADEP. A book club in Exedra Books the first Monday of every month, along with several forums of discussion whenever possible.

Truly remarkable stuff, and I’m 100% positive that without Levi, this whole thing wouldn’t have been possible. What makes me want to hurl is what sandwiches this list of accolades, and hence the spark that made me write this little rant of mine. As an intro to this article, the civilized equivalent of an arrow shower is unleashed as Levi goes against writers in and out of the ADEP, the government entities, and the public at large. I had the honor of being taught by him; the man is a great teacher, and in many ways is the best source of knowledge for anyone who wants to become a writer. But, as every peer that has ever shared a room with him can tell you, he seems to carry all the resentment the literary world (the concept) has against the government and public that doesn’t pay attention to it and fuels every other sentence with poisonous snark that is of such assassin-level expertise that sweet Jeebus, I’d hate to see him when he’s mad… which might be often. I’m used to being around people who believe the world is out to bring them down (my dad is that way), and Levi has always seemed to me as the person at the party that would be standing on the corner pointing fingers as to why the scene he is seeing is so fundamentally wrong, criticism spawned partly out of resentment, but right afterwards wonders why nobody pays attention to him, which fuels his resentment more. The situation begs the question: which came first? The indifference or the resentment?

Read the article (in Spanish… sorry, English readers!) by clicking here. I scanned it, because I know I’m going to get flack from someone who doesn’t understand where I’m coming from with this. The resentment palpable in this article goes towards how writers and creators in general can’t seem to unite and work together for a common goal. Now, I’m a founding member of the ADEP (believe it), but I detached myself from it for that very reason: the faint number of meetings I attended from 2004-2005 were manic and mostly unintelligible. Of course, the ADEP has come a long way since then and I’m infinitely glad it found its rhythm, but if the head honcho of your group is blowing his top off about how writers, who are lone wolves and engage in a solitary practice as basic as writing to begin with, can’t put their agoraphobias aside and work together for the sake of Panamanian culture, then something is surely amiss. If the author says that creative minds can’t possibly come together in order to do art that pushes culture forward, I’m afraid I have to respectfully disagree wholeheartedly. That’s the part that irks me about Levi’s apparent resentment to everyone that’s not on his boat, which somehow reminds me of Tom Cruise’s stance on Scientology or George W. Bush’s stance on the War on Terror: you’re either with us, or against us. Of course, any person with half a brain can tell you that life is anything but black and white. Personally, I left my whining when I left my teens, and instead of jumping on the Levi boat of accomplishing while at the same time criticizing the very people you are trying to attract to your camp, I decided to engage in a middle ground approach that narrows down to, quite simply, “get things done.” And just like I have in my own special way with my wonderful friends at Porto Diao, many writers with supreme intellect and blessed narrative have decided to directly impact the issues of culture and diffusion of culturally-relevant activities with a myriad of seminars and workshops that try to invite people to let their creativity grow.

The third (and last) part of the article addresses this as the future of writing in Panama, and here’s where we wholeheartedly agree. Levi writes that literary critique show be revived in print, as well as talking to school and college professors in order to include Panamanian authors in their school programs, as well as making said workshops and seminars in ways that will not be infinitely boring. After years of sticking to old school guns, it seems that Levi is beginning to embrace the broadening of methods in order to attract the mainstream. Integration and the ability to play nice is key to attract a mainstream that’s more akin to music, celebrities and getting drunk. This “integration” will never happen if people from one camp criticize the other, though… I’m looking at you, grumpy culture warrior.

I love the guy, and I believe he deserves every bit of praise he receives as an author and cultural promoter… praise which he is quick to acknowledge. Being a bit low on humility aside, Levi is and always will be a pillar in Panamanian culture and the loudest voice of those who think the Panamanian government should pay attention to the lack of appreciation for art in this country. Believe it or not, I’m in the same camp… but my approach is different. Radically different, as it’s been pointed out to me. So different, in fact, that it seems that to the eyes of some, I don’t want anything to do in that camp. As I said before, I left my whining when I left my teens, leaving my need to apologize to said group along with it. I guess that, in closing, the main reason that made the article rub me the wrong way is that it seems things within the artistic community will not change until new blood is pumped into its system, and the hermetic, conservative approach that same community embraces while calling out everyone under the sun on their lack of attention has always seemed to me a bit hypocritical, and that goes against everything I stand for. That’s also the reason why I applaud the authors that are doing less whining and more doing, attacking the problem head on. Hopefully those authors will represent the new blood that will broaden the collective’s horizons. Of course, I am aware that there is no clear-cut way of seeing this problem and there are many opinions on the subject and the people trying to push it to the mainstream’s limelight… this is just mine.

The most frequently updated page about Panamanian writers is this one, maintained by the awesome human being Jose Luis Rodriguez Pitti, whose project MiniTextos is a tasty treat every weekend. Dear Marley, I hope for all my marbles this piece get picked up by a Panamanian author and sparks a lively discussion.

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