Geeking-Out October 6, 2024
You Sound Like A White Girl - The Case for Rejecting Assimilation
Curated by Adrian Ruiz
On September 30, 2024, the Inspiracion Speaker Series brought to town bestselling author Julissa Arce to share her powerful story of finding success in The United States as an undocumented immigrant. In her latest bestseller, You Sound Like A White Girl, Julissa speaks candidly about the myths of assimilation and casts a vision of hope and belonging for the Latino community.
Here is a glimpse into some of the book’s main points: “In this dual polemic and manifesto, Julissa dives into and tears apart the lie that assimilation leads to belonging. She combs through history and her own story to break down this myth, arguing that assimilation is a moving finish line designed to keep Black and brown Americans and immigrants chasing racist American ideals. She talks about the Lie of Success, the Lie of Legality, the Lie of Whiteness, and the Lie of English – each promising that if you obtain these things, you will reach acceptance–you won’t be an outsider anymore. Instead, Julissa deftly argues, these demands leave her and those like her in a purgatory – neither able to secure the power and belonging of whiteness nor find it in the community and cultures whiteness demands we leave behind.”
The Inspiracion Speaker Series is an inegral part of YDN’s Creciente Latino-Latinx Leadership program. For more details on creciente, please visit here.