osmani ochoa is a queer Mexican-Xicano poet, organizer, and writer whose art centers on migrantfuturism, world-building, and acts of resistance.
Photo credit: Chris Summitt
osmani ochoa, a queer Mexican-Xicano poet based in San Antonio, Texas, channels hope through the collective power of imagination and dreaming. His writing uplifts activist communities courageously engaged in the radical act of world-building, envisioning futures rooted in reciprocity and reparation: “It comes down / To our vision versus theirs / Our dreams versus theirs.”
Blending science fiction, politics, vulnerability, pop culture, and alternate histories, osmani’s work often reads like a cosmic manifesto. His poems navigate landscapes of survival, resistance, and hope, aching for full and unhindered liberation. They tackle wealth inequality, capitalism, migration, climate destruction, racism, colonization, and empire, while offering counter-narratives of resilience grounded in family, love, and community.
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Originally from Jalisco, México, osmani (he/they) has been accepted for publication in Space & Time Magazine, Cuéntame Literary Magazine, Windward Review, Star*Line Magazine, La Raíz Magazine, VOICES de la Luna, Osmani was a finalist for the 2024 Howling Bird Press Poetry Prize and winner of the Abode Press chapbook prize for his forthcoming debut ‘How to Survive an Asthma Attack in a Climate Apocalypse’. His work will appear in two upcoming Latinx and Xicanx sci-fi anthologies, including ‘Not Your Papi's Utopia: Latinx Visions of Radical Hope’ (Mouthfeel Press). Lastly, osmani is finalizing his full-length debut poetry collection through Maíz Poppin’ Press, which is described by Pedro Iniguez (author of ‘Mexicans on the Moon: Speculative Poetry from a Possible Future’) as “a powerful, unflinching collection of poetry that reads like a cosmic manifesto… [osmani’s poetry] is scathing, yet sweet, epic, yet deeply personal. A can't-miss work from a unique voice."
Rooted in years of community organizing across cities like San Francisco, Tucson, Houston, Albuquerque, Portland, and San Antonio, osmani views poetry as a tool for transformative change. Inspired by movements like the Black Power Movement, the Chicano Movement, the Zapatista uprising, and anti-imperialist struggles in El Salvador and the Global South, he wields poetry to articulate resistance, build solidarity, and spark action. Through their work, osmani archives marginalized voices and reimagines a more just and liberated migrantfuturism.
