Mila D. Aguilar

Mila D. Aguilar (1949 – October 13, 2023)[1][2] was a Filipina poet, novelist, essayist, activist, educator, website designer, and video documentarian.[3][4] Writing under the nom de guerre Clarita Roja during the dangerous days of the Marcos dictatorship, she is best remembered for having been "the best known poet in the underground movement during the Marcos Regime."[5] More broadly, she is also known for her leadership roles in the resistance against the authoritarian regime of Ferdinand Marcos,[6] and for her continued social activism in the years after Marcos was deposed,[6] including the last phase of her activism which was strongly influenced with her beliefs after her 1990 conversion to Born Again christianity.[1][6]

As a writer she is best known for the poetry books Why Cage Pigeons?, A Comrade is as Precious as a Rice Seedling and Journey: An Autobiography in Verse (1964-1995),[7] and the autobiographical novel "The Nine Deaths of M".[6]

  1. ^ a b Manguerra-Brainard, Cecilia (October 18, 2023). "Farewell to a Caged Pigeon". Positively Filipino. Archived from the original on December 22, 2023. Retrieved December 22, 2023.
  2. ^ Lolarga, Elisabeth (November 14, 2012). "Comrade Mila and Sister Mila are one". VERA Files. Archived from the original on January 3, 2024. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  3. ^ Gloria, Glenda (January 2, 2017). "From an old poet to a young novelist (and back)". RAPPLER. Retrieved December 22, 2023.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference AssertionsTruthModesFactFiction was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Santiago, L. 2002. In the Name of the Mother: 100 Years of Philippine Feminist Poetry. Quezon City: University of the Philippines Press.
  6. ^ a b c d Concepcion, Mary Grace R. (2017). "Framing the revolution: Mila Aguilar's poetry of transformation in Journey: An Autobiography in Verse (1964-1995)". Diliman Review. 61 (2). Quezon City: University of the Philippines Diliman.
  7. ^ "Mila".