Ronnie Burk
Ronnie Burk (1955-2003) was a notable figure in the realms of poetry and activism, known for his exploration of the experiences of being a gay Chicano in a predominantly white society. Born in Sinton, Texas, to a mixed-race family, Burk faced early encounters with racial bias and societal disapproval, particularly after publicly coming out as homosexual at the age of 16. His life was marked by a spirit of rebellion and a commitment to counter-culture movements, including the anti-Vietnam War protests. Throughout his life, he lived in various cities, including Mexico and New York City, where he immersed himself in Chicano and Native American causes, as well as Buddhist philosophy.
Burk's artistic journey was influenced by his studies with prominent writers like Diane di Prima and Allen Ginsburg, which helped shape his experimental style. His poetry, published in magazines such as Caracol, often addressed themes of identity and the struggles faced by marginalized communities. In the face of the AIDS crisis, which deeply affected his circle, Burk relocated to San Francisco to advocate for better support systems for those impacted by the disease. His activism was marked by direct actions, including a protest at the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, showcasing his dedication to social justice and the liberation of the human spirit through both art and activism.
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Subject Terms
Ronnie Burk
Writer
- Born: April 1, 1955
- Birthplace: Sinton, Texas
- Died: March 12, 2003
- Place of death: San Francisco, California
Biography
Experimental in style and rebellious in temperament, Ronnie Burk wrote about the experience of being a gay Chicano in a white-dominated culture; its oppression of people who deviate from the norm, he believed, was leading to a crisis. His counter-culture convictions grew from an impoverished, troubled youth and a bohemian life. Burk was born in Sinton, Texas, on April 1, 1955. His father was a white sharecropper, and his mother came from a family of Mexican farmers. Burk learned the nature of racial bias early in a community that disapproved of his parents’ mixed-race marriage. In 1971 he announced that he was homosexual, which brought him more disapproval, and later that year Burk dropped out of high school and left Sinton to take part in the anti-Vietnam War movement. Until he moved to San Francisco in 1989, he lived for short periods in several Texas cities, Mexico, Colorado, New York City, Boston, Memphis, and Hawaii. In these places he espoused Chicano and Native American causes, studied Buddhist philosophy and meditation, and became an activist for the rights of people suffering from acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). He died in 2003.
During the summer of 1974 and the two following summers, Burk studied with Diane di Prima and Allen Ginsburg at the Naropa Institute in Boulder, Colorado. He developed his interest in avant-garde art and literature, but he also grew interested in the culture of indigenous Mexican peoples, with whom he identified. Attempts to synthesize these interests produced his first published poetry in Caracol: La revista de la Raza (snail: the magazine of race) in 1977 and a chapbook, En el jardín de los nopales (In the garden of the prickly pears) in 1983. The poems speak of life as a poor Chicano, the local’s view of the harsh Texas landscape, and problems of identity. In 1979, Burk traveled to New York City to meet poet Charles Henri Ford of Blues Magazine, who introduced him to experimentalist writers and artists. Burke worked with the members of the Nuyorican Poets Café, helped organize poetry readings, and grew closer to surrealism in his own writing. He also began to exhibit his collages. In all his poetry and art he looked forward to a freeing of the human spirit from the “self torture of an inherited code of sins” and an awakening to an age of wisdom and compassion based upon a nontraditional acceptance of intuitional and magical influences on daily life.
The increasingly frequent loss of old friends from AIDS prompted Burk to move to San Francisco, where he believed the established AIDS support network was not serving patients fairly. Always an activist, he sought to correct injustices both in his writing and in such direct, confrontational moves as the invasion of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation office in 2000.