If I had a nickel for every time I wasn’t “Hispanic enough” or “Chicano enough” or “Latino enough.” I’ve been told that I’m “white-passing.” That I’m too Americanized. When you’re an American with a Mexican heritage, you’re pigeon-holed. You automatically have to follow a certain criteria grounding up. And when you decide you want to be a writer, you have to write a certain way. Write about certain characters. Write about the scent of your abuela making tortillas as you explore the world outside her kitchen window.
Please enjoy today’s poem.
We internalize racism, while idiots in government
Want to build a wall that’s already built.
We protest racism while practicing it here
Like we’re training for points.
Training to sign up
but we’re failing to understand each other.
Too American for the Mexicans and
Too Mexican for the whites
I’m bicultural
not assimilated
But Sometimes I wished I was
Chapin City Blues 