Synopses & Reviews
Latinos are already the largest minority group in the United States, and experts estimate that by 2050, one out of three Americans will identify as Latino. Though their population and influence are steadily rising, stereotypes and misconceptions about Latinos remain, from the assumption that they refuse to learn English to questions of just how "American" they actually are. By presenting thirteen riveting oral histories of young, first-generation college students, Mario T. Garcia counters those long-held stereotypes and expands our understanding of what he terms "the Latino Generation."
Review
"A deeply moving and personal account of the struggles these young men and women faced not only in negotiating a social, political, and economic terrain marked by the anti-immigrant hostility of the late twentieth and early twenty-first century, but also the intimate battles they waged within their own families as each crafted his or her own meaning of the so-called 'American dream.' Garcia's book provides insight into the hopes and fears of the newest generation of Latinos, as they struggle to attain academic success and a place in American society on their terms."--Monica Perales, author of
Smeltertown: Making and Remembering a Southwest Border Community
Review
"Mario Garcia's
The Latino Generation is based on thirteen oral histories that he conducted over the span of several years with University of California, Santa Barbara students. By historicizing the lives of these young people, Garcia places them within the continuum of Chicano/Latino history, and thus emerges a portrait of a specific era from the perspective of those who lived it. Garcia makes clear that history is not was, but is, and that everyday people are the engines of change. This book will become a major contribution and enhance our understanding of the experiences of this Latino Generation of the early 21st century."--Ernesto Chavez, University of Texas at El Paso
About the Author
Mario T. Garcia is professor of Chicano studies and history at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He is author of Blowout!: Sal Castro and the Chicano Struggle for Educational Justice.