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Mexican military takes over Acapulco police force

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Oprah’s Book Club: American Dirt — Official Trailer | Apple Music

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There's a book you might have heard of by now. It's called American Dirt, and it's the much-hyped new novel from author Jeanine Cummins that was released this week.

It's the story of a Mexican woman named Lydia and her 8-year-old son Luca, who flee their home and undertake a harrowing journey to the U.S. border after gunmen from a local drug cartel kill most of their family. It's been hailed as "a Grapes of Wrath for our times." In fact, that quote is on the cover of the book.

And that is one of the many problems with American Dirt, according to several critics. There have been tweet threads and essays, all arguing that the book deploys harmful stereotypes. Even a hashtag - My Latino Novel - has popped up on Twitter, where people are writing their own parodies. But there is so much more to say about race and identity in publishing, about who gets to tell what stories and which of those voices are elevated in the mainstream culture.

Los Angeles Times writer Esmeralda Bermudez has been one of the most vocal critics of American Dirt. "In 17 years of journalism, in interviewing thousands of immigrants, I've never come across anyone like American Dirt's main character," Bermudez says.

This is a wonderful, melodramatic telenovela, something I would love watching for cheap entertainment. ... But this should not be called by anyone 'the great immigrant novel, the story of our time.'

"She's this middle-class, bookstore-owning woman who left Mexico with a small fortune in her pocket, like she was going to go to France or something. With inheritance money. With an ATM to her mom's life savings. And why did she leave? Because she was flirting with a drug lord who's now trying to kill her. This is a wonderful, melodramatic telenovela, something I would love watching for cheap entertainment, like a narco-thriller on Netflix. But this should not be called by anyone 'the great immigrant novel, the story of our time, The Grapes of Wrath.' Why? How did we get to a point in our industry, in the book industry, in society, that this is the low standard that we have?"

Writer Myriam Gurba, another critic of the book, pointed out a particular inauthenticity: "There is a scene where the main character encounters an ice rink. And she's utterly shocked at the existence of this ice rink, as if she's unaware that winter sports are played in Mexico. And I was laughing," Gurba says. "I laughed out loud when I got to that section because I learned to ice skate in Mexico. I learned to ice skate at age 9 in Guadalajara."

Bermudez, like many others speaking out against the book, says that despite the author's intentions, it doesn't reflect the truth of the migrant experience. "My grandfather, my aunt, my uncle were killed in El Salvador at a time of death squads. Death squads sponsored by the U.S. I was separated from my mom, I didn't meet her until I was five because of all this violence. I wanted to see myself reflected in this book. It's painful that not only did I not see myself, but I found all these things that constantly make us feel small."

I wanted to see myself reflected in this book. It's painful that not only did I not see myself, but I found all these things that constantly make us feel small.

She says she understands that Americans who aren't migrants themselves or come from migrant families may walk away from this book with a completely different feeling. "This book has left a lot of white readers with this very fuzzy feeling, like, 'Oh my God' about immigrants. And my skin is crawling. My skin is crawling."

We recorded an interview with Cummins, the book's author, last week - an interview that never aired because the criticism of American Dirt started coming down hard, and the conversation about this book had to change. So we called Cummins back. She says she's tried to avoid the criticism, especially on Twitter. When I share some of what's being said, Cummins says, "I don't know how to respond to this. ... Not everyone has to love my book. I endeavored to be incredibly culturally sensitive, I did the work, I did five years of research. The whole intention in my heart when I wrote this book was to try to upend the stereotypes that I saw being very prevalent in our national dialogue. And I felt like there was room ... for us to examine the humanity of the people involved."

Cummins says she's aware of her own privilege, her cultural blind spots and the imbalances in the publishing industry. "And that's not a problem that I can fix, nor is it a problem that I'm responsible for," she says. "All I can do is write the book that I believe in. And I did that."

You can find the rest of my conversation with Cummins here.
This story was produced for radio by Lisa Weiner and Reena Advani, and adapted for the Web by Petra Mayer.

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Latinx Critics Speak Out Against 'American Dirt'; Jeanine Cummins Responds

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There's a book you might have heard of by now. It's called American Dirt, and it's the much-hyped new novel from author Jeanine Cummins that was released this week. It's the story of a Mexican woman named Lydia and her 8-year-old son Luca, who flee their home and undertake a harrowing journey to the U.S.

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'American Dirt' Has Us Talking. That's a Good Thing.

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'American Dirt' Has Us Talking. That's a Good Thing.

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Our lives, our cultures, are composed of many overlapping stories. Novelist Chimamanda Adichie tells the story of how she found her authentic cultural voice -- and warns that if we hear only a single story about another person or country, we risk a critical misunderstanding.

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Acapulco has become the most dangerous city in Mexico

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Fighting The Acapulco Drug Cartel | Reggie Yates: The Insider | Real Stories

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pages 1-15

It starts off right away with violence as cartel members murder Lydia’s entire family (16 in total). What did you think about this beginning?

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pages 59-65

Lydia and Luca are on the run from Javier and the cartel. They eventually go to Mexico City where they stay with a friend of her husband. But his religious wife is not comfortable with them staying there. Let’s talk about that section.

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What would you have done if you were Lydia?

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What did you think about the descriptions of Acapulco in the book?

How does the current state of Acapulco differ from your previous knowledge of this tourist attraction?

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Imelda traveled there in the late 90s, before the corruption and said it was beautiful and completely safe. Main street was "insane! Long nights of clubs, restaurants, and all kinds of fun stuff. Back then it was wonderful." She is so sad and mad about the current state.

(see next few posts for more pictures from her trip there)

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Building Background Knowledge- La Bestia

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Building Background Knowledge- La Bestia

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Riding 'The Death Train' to America's border

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Sebastián persists in running his story on Javier even though he knows it will put him and his family in grave danger. Do you admire what he did? Was he a good journalist or a bad husband and father? Is it possible he was both? What would you have done if you were him?

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Throughout the novel, Lydia thinks back on how, when she was living a middle-class existence, she viewed migrants with pity. Do you think the author chose to make Lydia a middle-class woman as her protagonist for a reason? Do you think the reader would have had a different entry point to the novel if Lydia started out as a poor migrant? Would you have viewed Lydia differently if she had come from poor origins? How much do you identify with Lydia?

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Lydia refers to her and Luca becoming migrants as something that happened to them rather than something they did. Do you think the author did this intentionally? Do you think language allows us to label things as “other” that is, in a way, tantamount to self-preservation? Does it allow us to compartmentalize things that are too difficult to comprehend?

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When Lydia is at the Casa del Migrante, she learns the term cuerpomático --- “human ATM machine” --- and what it means. Were you surprised to learn how dangerous the passage is, and for female migrants in particular?

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When Lydia, Luca, Soledad and Rebeca are at the Casa del Migrante, the priest warns them to turn back. Were you surprised that he would be issuing such a dire warning when he must know how desperate they are to be there in the first place? Under what conditions might you decide to leave your homeland?

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Was Javier’s reaction to Marta’s death at all understandable? Humanizing? Do you believe that he didn’t want Lydia dead? Is what he did, in the name of his daughter, any less paternal than what Lydia does for Luca is maternal?

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"She prays that he won't survive his mutilation, that merciful death comes quickly for him. More fervently, she prays that whatever impression the incident has on Luca, it won't cause him any further harm. Surely her son may soon reach a limit of what a resilient child might endure without triggering some permanent internal decay." Based on the article from The National Association of School Psychologists, what stuck with you as something we (as educators) can do?

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National Association of School Psychologists (NASP)

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As a result of war and violence around the world, many families are forced to flee their homes as refugees. This collection of NASP resources can help schools meet the unique needs of this population.

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"Lydia is constantly reminded that her education has no purchase here, that she has no access to the kind of information that has real currency on this journey." (page 212)

What are your thoughts regarding this statement?

Rebeca and Soledad bring so much insight to Lydia's journey. We have students sitting in our classrooms everyday who may not show their intelligence on data points, but can bring SO much knowledge to our classrooms and discussions. How can we tap into ALL students' prior knowledge and what they can bring to the table in everyday lessons?

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What are your biggest "takeaways" from this section. Please elaborate on your thoughts!

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“But the moment of the crossing has already passed, and she didn’t even realize it had happened. She never looked back, never committed any small act of ceremony to help launch her into the new life on the other side. Nothing can be undone. Adelante” (chapter 30, page 323). Do you think Lydia is better or worse off for not having known about the moment of her boundary crossing? What importance do rituals have in marking milestones in our lives? Can the done be undone, the past rewinded?

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Toward the end of the novel, Soledad “sticks her hand through the fence and wiggles her fingers on the other side. Her fingers are in el norte. She spits through the fence. Only to leave a piece of herself there on American dirt” (chapter 28, page 301). Why do you think Soledad spits over the border? Is doing so a victory for her?

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“I heard if your life is in danger wherever you come from, they’re not allowed to send you back there.”

To Lydia it sounds like mythology, but she can’t help asking anyway, “You have to be Central American? To apply for asylum?”

Beto shrugs. “Why? Your life in danger?”

Lydia sighs. “Isn’t everyone’s?”

(chapter 26, page 277)

If you were writing the rules for asylum eligibility, what would they be?

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When Luca finally crosses over to the United States, he’s disappointed: “The road below is nothing like the roads Luca imagined he’d encounter in the USA. He thought every road here would be broad as a boulevard, paved to perfection, and lined with fluorescent shopfronts. This road is like the crappiest Mexican road he’s ever seen. Dirt, dirt, and more dirt” (chapter 31, page 329). Discuss the significance of the title, AMERICAN DIRT. What do you think the author means by it?

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The term “American” only appears once in the novel. Did you notice? Why do you think the author made this choice?

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How has your opinion/beliefs/feelings changed about newcomer students and/or immigrants since reading this book?

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Ballard

I do feel like ceremonies or rituals help us to close a chapter of our lives and move on to a new chapter. But I agree that knowing the exact moment she was on American soil might have meant that she let down her guard and it was probably good that she didn't know. Maybe instead she could implement a ritual on the same day each year.