caption death_date death_place birth_place awards image_size notableworks birth_date spouse genre image article_title birth_name partner occupation
rich in 1980 27 march 2012 santa cruz , california baltimore , maryland , usa national book award 1974 160px '' diving into the wreck '' 16 may 1929 alfred 3 children -rrb- haskell conrad -lrb- 1953-1970 ; his death ; poetry , non-fiction adrienne rich 1980.jpg adrienne rich
 adrienne cecile rich michelle cliff -lrb- 1976-2012 -rrb- poet , non-fiction writer , essayist
adrienne rich

adrienne cecile rich -lrb- may 16 , 1929 -- march 27 , 2012 -rrb- was an american poet , essayist and feminist .
she was called `` one of the most widely read and influential poets of the second half of the 20th century '' , and was credited with bringing `` the oppression of women and lesbians to the forefront of poetic discourse . ''
her first collection of poetry , `` a change of world '' , was selected by renowned poet w. h. auden for the yale series of younger poets award .
rich went on to write the introduction to the published volume .
she famously declined the national medal of arts , protesting the vote by house speaker newt gingrich to end funding for the national endowment for the arts .
