Citizenship
Praise FOR CITIZENSHIP
“The most comprehensive book on citizenship/immigration I’ve ever read.” – Javier Zamora
“A relevant and moving book, to be read in community and widely discussed in book clubs, in classrooms, in libraries, and on subways… A gift” – Sarah Schulman
“As we reel in social and political chaos…it’s reassuring to have an astute and composed writer like Daisy Hernández to guide us back to reason.” – Rigoberto González
“This is a book that demands to be read by everyone.” – Reyna Grande
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In this one-of-a-kind book, Daisy Hernández fiercely interrogates one of the most complicated subjects of contemporary life and politics: citizenship. Braiding memoir, history, and cultural criticism, she exposes the truths and lies of how we define ourselves as a country and a people. Turning to her own family’s stories—her mother arrived from Colombia, while her father was a political refugee from Castro’s Cuba—Hernández shows how the very idea of citizenship is a myth, one of the stories we tell ourselves about the American soul and psyche.
Reframing our understanding of what it means to be an American, Citizenship is an urgent and necessary account of the laws, customs, and language we use to include and exclude, especially those who come from Latin America. With her scholar’s mind and memoirist’s gift for narrative, Hernández weaves a story both personal and national, while reckoning with our country’s ongoing debate about who belongs and providing fresh ways of thinking about citizenship. At once bracing, fearless, and tender, Citizenship is a powerful portrait of one family’s experiences in the borderlands of citizenship and an honest illumination of the country in which we live.
