September is National Hispanic Heritage Month (between September 15 and October 15), so this review is early. Victor Villaseñor’s fascinating biography of growing up Mexican American in mid-20th century California is a story of both anguish and resilience in a hostile environment. (Villaseñor has written acclaimed books such as Macho! and Rain of Gold). He describes his bad experiences in Anglo-dominated schools with such poignancy; his white teachers degraded him as a Mexican and forced him to speak only English. Villaseñor tried hard not to be stereotyped, but his cultural heritage found nothing but scorn in the schools. Worse, he could not read and had to repeat the third grade twice, reinforcing his peers’ attitudes that he was a stupid Mexican. Burro Genius raises several questions about the history of education in the United States. Were schools designed to make people like Villaseñor “white”? Is education about control and conformity? As I read this book and his experiences as a Mexican American, I kept thinking about the Indian boarding schools and whites’ efforts to strip Native Americans of their culture. Villaseñor, like Native Americans, was taught to “know their place” in white-dominated society. Interestingly, he learned more about practical education outside the school. One of his fondest moments in school was when a substitute teacher instructed the class to write about what excited them about learning rather than emphasizing punctuation and grammar like military drill. Villaseñor’s book is also about triumph of the human spirit as the author learns to forgive and coming to peace with himself, without succumbing to the labels of being Mexican American. He suffers tragedy, including the death of his older brother (which he blames himself for a while). But he has a strong foundation with his parents, which helps him grow as a person. This biography is very moving with its tale of rising above adversity, and its comic moments make it more inspiring. Villaseñor, Victor. Burro Genius: A Memoir. New York: Rayo, 2004. TS
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
CategoriesAuthorTom Schmidt lives in Prescott Valley, AZ. Archives
October 2018
CategoriesArchives
October 2018
|