Experiencing America Book Club: Finding Latinx

What does it mean to live in America now?

What does America look like?

How did we get to be who and where we are?

Let's talk about our lives in America today.

Our book selections, provided by the CT State Library, will be from the Experiencing America collection, made up of adult and young adult books offering perspectives and voices that are intentionally human-centered explorations of identities and systems impacting contemporary America.

In March the group will discuss Finding Latinx: In Search of the Voices Redefining Latino Identity by Paola Ramos.

"Latinos across the United States are redefining identities, pushing boundaries, and awakening politically in powerful and surprising ways. Many—Afrolatino, indigenous, Muslim, queer and undocumented, living in large cities and small towns—are voices who have been chronically overlooked in how the diverse population of almost sixty million Latinos in the U.S. has been represented. No longer.

In this empowering cross-country travelogue, journalist and activist Paola Ramos embarks on a journey to find the communities of people defining the controversial term, “Latinx.” She introduces us to the indigenous Oaxacans who rebuilt the main street in a post-industrial town in upstate New York, the “Las Poderosas” who fight for reproductive rights in Texas, the musicians in Milwaukee whose beats reassure others of their belonging, as well as drag queens, environmental activists, farmworkers, and the migrants detained at our border. Drawing on intensive field research as well as her own personal story, Ramos chronicles how “Latinx” has given rise to a sense of collectivity and solidarity among Latinos unseen in this country for decades.

A vital and inspiring work of reportage, Finding Latinx calls on all of us to expand our understanding of what it means to be Latino and what it means to be American. The first step towards change, writes Ramos, is for us to recognize who we are."—penguinrandomhouse.com

Join us to engage in this monthly book discussion presented in collaboration with the Clinton Human Rights Committee.