Latinos in the U.S.

elective courses

Exploration of Latinos in the US and the complexities of competing identities of (not) belonging impacted by differences of histories and origins, as well as language(s), race/ethnicity, class, gender, and sexual orientation.

The course will explore the Latino struggle of belonging, or not belonging, to the mythic U.S. melting pot. The course engages with the complexity of the Latin American & Caribbean Diaspora in the US as a problem of being both/and as well as neither/nor in terms of how the US and the countries of origin view them, and how they negotiate this space in terms of race, ethnicity, country of origin, and cultural variables including linguistic, gender, sexuality, religion, and class. The difficulty of finding an identity, a locus, and the various modes of adaptation and adoption will be explored through cultural productions which attempt to articulate the state of (not) belonging. We will also look at the complexities of (im)migration and the dissimilar processes by which different groups within the Diaspora have come to be part of the US narrative. We will examine the difference between Latino/Hispanic/Chicano and variations within those groups. We will also have an opportunity to converse with some authors and filmmakers.

Practical Info:

• The readings are selected short stories, poems, fragments available through the library, as well as via pdf in Google drive.

• All readings are in English (with some Spanish words) and the films are either in English, a mix of English/Spanish (Spanglish), or Spanish with English subtitles.

• Regular attendance, particularly as this is an accelerated course, is required.

• Participation in the seminar through asking questions and engaging thoughtfully in a conversation is also expected.

• Given the accelerated context of the course, it is hoped that students will do some readings/film viewings during the regular semester in advance. Dr. Reitsma is happy to meet with students via Zoom prior to the in-person start of the course.

• Course is taught in English.

Films (title/director): (many are not streaming in Poland but are in other

European countries, particularly in Germany)

1. Latin History for Morons. John Leguizamo. Netflix. (streaming in Poland).

2. Born in East LA. Cheech Marin.

3. Bless Me, Última. Carl Franklin.

4. The Rise and Fall of the Brown Buffalo. Philip Rodriguez.

5. Quinceañera. Richard Glatzer & Wash Westmoreland.

6. The Milagro Beanfield War. Robert Redford.

7. Real Women Have Curves. Patricia Cardoso. (available streaming in Poland)

8. The Garden Left Behind. Flavio Alves.

9. Nobody’s Watching. Julia Solomonoff.

10. La Mission. Peter Bratt.

11. Los Jornaleros/The Day Laborers. Lane Shefter Bishop.

12. I Carry You with Me. Heidi Ewing. (available streaming in Poland)

Excerpts/Fragments from: (please note that ALL readings are short stories, single chapters, excerpts, or fragments –all will be available as PDF in LMS or GoogleDrive).

1. Gloria Anzaldúa. Borderlands/La Frontera.

2. Cherie Moraga. Loving in the War Years.

3. Ana Castillo. Loverboys. (Short Story: Vatolandia)

4. Rudolfo Anaya. Bless Me, Última.

5. Oscar Zeta Acosta. Autobiography of a Brown Buffalo.

6. Luis J. Rodriguez. Always Running: La vida loca.

7. Michael Nava. Lay Your Sleeping Head.

8. Rigoberto González. Butterfly Boy.

9. Achy Obejas. We Came All the Way from Cuba…? (selected short stories)

10. Esmeralda Santiago. When I was Puerto Rican.

11. Cristina García. Dreaming in Cuban.

12. Julia Álvarez. How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents.

13. Junot Díaz. Drown (selected short stories)

14. Sandra Cisneros. Woman Hollering Creek. (selected short stories)

15. Jaime Manrique. Latin Moon in Manhattan.

16. Benjamin Alire Saenz. Everything Begins and Ends at the Kentucky Club. (selected short stories)

17. Emanuel Xavier. Selected Poems.

1. Study the history and culture of the various Latino groups in the US through cultural productions of novels, essays, poetry, song, and film.

2. To learn the differences between various Latino groups in the US (based on different cultures, histories, and patterns of immigration and migration) such as those between Puerto Ricans in NY and Mexican Americans in LA. Develop an understanding of the social, cultural, and political histories of the different groups of Latinos in the US.

3. To deepen an understanding of issues of race, class, gender, sexuality in the US and how these issues of diversity and social justice are negotiated by the racially and linguistically marginalized.

4. Further develop skills in writing, speaking, critical thinking, and research.

5. Understand and interpret critical appraisals of Latino literature and culture. Questions to consider: What is Latino/Hispanic/Chicano? In what ways do race, ethnicity, class, gender, and sexuality complicate the polemics of Latino identity and culture? How do politics of assimilation, adaptation, immigration versus transmigration, literacy, different versions of Spanish versus English, and religious practice affect the (de)construction of Latino identity/culture?

20% Attendance and participation

60% per weekly short reflection papers (three total, 2 pages maximum)

20% Four Perspectives Paper (approx. 4 pages)