Flatiron Books
You Sound Like a White Girl: The Case for Rejecting Assimilation
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AN INDIE BESTSELLER
Most Anticipated by ELLE - Bustle - Bloomberg - Kirkus - HipLatina - SheReads - BookPage - The Millions - The Mujerista - Ms. Magazine - and more
"Unflinching" --Ms. Magazine - "Phenomenal" --BookRiot - "An essential read" --Kirkus, starred review - "Necessary" --Library Journal - "Powerful" --Joaquin Castro - "Illuminating" --Reyna Grande - "A love letter to our people" --José Olivarez - "I have been waiting for this book all my life" --Paul Ortiz
Bestselling author Julissa Arce calls for a celebration of our uniqueness, our origins, our heritage, and the beauty of the differences that make us Americans in this powerful polemic against the myth that assimilation leads to happiness and belonging for immigrants.
"You sound like a white girl." These were the words spoken to Julissa by a high school crush as she struggled to find her place in America. As a brown immigrant from Mexico, assimilation had been demanded of her since the moment she set foot in San Antonio, Texas, in 1994. She'd spent so much time getting rid of her accent so no one could tell English was her second language that in that moment she felt those words--you sound like a white girl?--were a compliment. As a child, she didn't yet understand that assimilating to "American" culture really meant imitating "white" America--that sounding like a white girl was a racist idea meant to tame her, change her, and make her small. She ran the race, completing each stage, but never quite fit in, until she stopped running altogether.
In this dual polemic and manifesto, Julissa dives into and tears apart the lie that assimilation leads to belonging. She combs through history and her own story to break down this myth, arguing that assimilation is a moving finish line designed to keep Black and brown Americans and immigrants chasing racist American ideals. She talks about the Lie of Success, the Lie of Legality, the Lie of Whiteness, and the Lie of English--each promising that if you obtain these things, you will reach acceptance and won't be an outsider anymore. Julissa deftly argues that these demands leave her and those like her in a purgatory--neither able to secure the power and belonging within whiteness nor find it in the community and cultures whiteness demands immigrants and people of color leave behind.
In You Sound Like a White Girl, Julissa offers a bold new promise: Belonging only comes through celebrating yourself, your history, your culture, and everything that makes you uniquely you. Only in turning away from the white gaze can we truly make America beautiful. An America where difference is celebrated, heritage is shared and embraced, and belonging is for everyone. Through unearthing veiled history and reclaiming her own identity, Julissa shows us how to do this.
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Book Details
ISBN:
9781250827821
EAN:
9781250827821
Binding:
Paperback
Pages:
224
Authors:
Julissa Arce
Publisher:
Flatiron Books
Published Date: 2023-21-03
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Finally go to read it! I recommend 💯
Our stories had lots of similarities and its great to hear the POV of someone that made it so high and still had that common struggle. We originally got this book as a book club possibility, but we had to decline it due to work conflicts that could possibly arise. But I would highly recommend this book to any Latina wanting to hear someone with the real struggles. These are feelings and emotions we have suppressed and this book boldly brings them to light. If you are a non Latina looking to understand our POV, its also helpful. Or if you are open to find out why we (Hispanics) feel a certain way, this is a good start.
Loved this book
This is a good book for getting your toes wet in both the complex history of the US, Mexico, and Latino history/culture AND the realities of what it means to be Latino today. It was heartbreaking but refreshing to see a lot of the struggles I've seen or lived through written on paper and explained so candidly. A good door opener into the conversations we should be having as a community and people! I appreciate it so much.
I found this book so interesting and profoundly educational that I had to share it with my Mexican family. It really made me look at how I as an educator myself fit in with whiteness? I realized that although I have assimilated to some of the American ways, I and my family did not lose our culture, language and music. Thank you for such a fantastic book.
