Thread by @irenemonicas

Excellent piece by @Itzel03Luna for the @latimes about important work CSUF will be doing thanks to folks including profe @ajgradilla I’m quoted in this piece on the use of the term #latinx and enjoyed reflecting on where we’ve been and where we are going…

https://twitter.com/latimes/status/1563571302920704000

“The whole reason why people are drawn to major in Chicano studies is they want to feel a sense of belonging. The longer that certain folks argue about this, it’s going to push people away,” Sanchez said.

“There is space for multiple stories and multiple communities and the Latinx Lab is trying to do that.”

The “x” doesn’t take away from teaching her students Chicano history, Sanchez said. Rather, it engages a wider range of students who have lived different experiences and would be turned away otherwise.

“You can still be who you are within the [Latinx] label. You can still be a Chicana, you can still be Guatemalan and Mexican, or Honduran,” Sanchez said. “You could still be whoever it is you are, just learning within that broader Latinx label.”

I know from my writing and publishing over the years some folks assumed because of perhaps my own ID/background and use of Xicana PhD for my blog what I think/act on everything, but we are much more complex than that. I named my blog that because I’m a Xicana with a PhD and…

Years ago as a CC student on academic probation/dismissal I had read how many Xicanas/Chicanas obtain doctoral degrees (less than .5%) It was an uphill climb, and even after I didn’t have the support I needed to “make it” in academia

But before all that when I transferred I decided to go to UC Santa Cruz, I chose to major in Latin American/Latino Studies. Why? I could’ve majored in Chicano studies at another UC I got into, but I wanted to learn more on things I didn’t know. Isn’t that the point of Ed?

There’s so much more to all of our stories...I’ve known this and lived it for years. This is what led me to do my own dissertation on the experiences of Latina/o/x CC students and how from these experiences we can redefine achievement and success in higher ed.

The method in my diss was testimonio, I used this method in my Masters and Bachelors work as well. Learning starts with listening and in that process we may learn more about ourselves too. The Latinx lab using storytelling is transformative learning.