Ortiz, Simon (Joseph) (1941– )

Poet and writer. An Acoma Pueblo Indian, he was educated through the Bureau of Indian Affairs, attended Fort Lewis College (1961–62), the University of New Mexico (1966–68), and the University of Iowa (1968–69). He served in the army (1963–66) during the Vietnam War. He worked in public relations (1969–70), as a newspaper editor (1970–73), and as a teacher at numerous institutions. He lived in Acoma Pueblo, New Mexico, and is known for his fiction and poetry such as A Good Journey (1977) and From Sand Creek: Rising in This Heart Which Is Our America (1981). He was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico.