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Looking at it from an eagle’s perspective our nation’s calendar is an exercise in memory. Days, weekends, and even entire months are turned into occasions for all sorts of diverse eulogies, including those to religious figures (Christmas), love and family (Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day), defining political events (Independence Day, Thanksgiving, Presidents’ Day, Holocaust [...]
En mi opinion host Ilan Stavans’ newest book is a graphic novel from Soft Skull Press, illustrated by Roberto Weil. Mr. Spic Goes to Washington tells the story of Mr. Spic — Samuel Patricio Inocencio Cárdenas — as he rises from a his rough-and-tumble past to the mayor’s office of Los Angeles, then on to [...]
I like the word Latino.
It has nothing to do with politics. It has nothing to do with a cultural affirmation. It’s a word that I like.
I don’t like Hispanic. It makes me think of panic … His panic! What about a woman who is from Latin America running away in panic … is it Her panic?Â
But Latino has [...]
This essay is dedicated to Fred Ho, a teacher and muse in my life.
Allow me to begin, as I always do when writing an essay, by stating that I am not an academic. You will not find the word Ibid or a single footnote. If you don’t understand something, I trust that you will conduct your own [...]
Earlier this week, Junot Diaz became the second U.S. Latino to win a Pulitzer prize for fiction for his debut novel, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. The novel had already earned the 2007 National Books Critics Circle Award.
Diaz, 39, was born in the Dominican Republican, and arrived in the U.S. in 1974. He [...]
“Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties.”
~ Erich Fromm
I am often asked to facilitate creative writing workshops and educational residencies. Along with the invitation is the question: “Can you teach the students to write poetry?” Over and over again my answer is: “Only if you and they are willing to jump [...]
Welcome to "En mi opinión," a blog hosted by Ilan Stavans, Advisory Editor of The Latino American Experience, a full-text reference tool exploring the history and culture of U.S. Latinos.
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