Synopses & Reviews
Chicana Leadership: The "Frontiers" Reader breaks the stereotypes of Mexican American women and shows how these women shape their lives and communities. This collection looks beyond the frequently held perception of Chicanas as passive and submissive and instead examines their roles as dynamic community leaders, activists, and scholars.
Chicana Leadership features fifteen essays from the notable women's journal Frontiers: A Journal of Women Studies that demonstrate the strength and diversity of Chicanas as well as their continuing struggle to have their voices heard. Noted scholars discuss issues ranging from the feminist prototype La Malinche to Chicana writers and national ideology, from gender and identity to ideas of culture and romance, and from tokenism to the diversity within the Chicana community. The essays provide an introduction to an evolving understanding of this diverse community of women and how they interact among themselves, with their community, and with the world around them.
Review
"Chicana Leadership is a significant resource both for general readers and students of Chicana/o studies, women's studies, sociology, history, literature, and political science."—Maria Cuevas, Washington State Magazine The Statesman Journal
Review
"This groundbreaking book collects 15 essays from the journal Frontiers: A Journal of Women Studies. . . . Their accomplishment here is in presenting the reality of the lives of Mexican American women."—Dan Hays, The Statesman Journal Dan Hays
Review
"Chicana Leadership is a significant resource both for general readers and students of Chicana/o studies, womens studies, sociology, history, literature, and political science."-Maria Cuevas, Washington State Magazine(Maria Cuevas, Washington State Magazine)
About the Author
Yolanda Flores Niemann is an associate professor of comparative American cultures and the director of Latino/Latina Outreach at Washington State University, Tri-Cities. Susan H. Armitage is a professor of history at Washington State University and the editor of Frontiers. Patricia Hart and Karen Weather-mon are managing editors of Frontiers.
Table of Contents
Introduction Chicanas: dispelling stereotypes while challenging racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia / Yolanda Flores Niemann -- La malinche, feminist prototype / Cordelia Candelaria -- Gender and ethnic identity among Chicanos / Maxine Baca Zinn -- Abriendo caminos in the brotherland: Chicana writers respond to the ideology of literary nationalism / Roberta Fernâandez -- The living legacy of Chicana performers: preserving history through oral testimony / Yolanda Broyles-Gonzâalez -- The faith of activists: barrios, cities, and the Chicana feminist response / Margarita Cota-Câardenas -- Reflections on diversity among Chicanas / Patricia Zavella -- Writing, politics, and las lesberadas: platicando con Gloria Anzaldâua / AnnLouise Keating -- Gender, race, and culture: Spanish-Mexican women in the historiography of frontier California / Antonia I. Castaäneda -- Gender, labor history, and Chicano/a ethnic identity / Sarah Deutsch -- Traditional and nontraditional patterns of female activism in the United Farm Workers of America, 1962-1980 / Margaret Rose -- Mexican American women grassroots community activists: "mothers of east Los Angeles" / Mary Pardo -- Awareness, consciousness, and resistance: raced, classed, and gendered leadership interactions in Milagro County, California / Josephine Mâendez-Negrete -- "Checkin' up on my guy": Chicanas, social capital, and the culture of romance / Angela Valenzuela -- Sense and responsibility / Maribel Sosa -- The making of a token: a case study of stereotype threat, stigma, racism, and tokenism in academe / Yolanda Flores Niemann.