Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza

Blurb

"This book is dedicated a todos mexicanos on both sides of the border. "
Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza [1987] is a semi-autobiographical work by Gloria E. Anzaldúa that includes prose and poems detailing the invisible "borders" that exist between Latinas/os and non-Latinas/os, men and women, heterosexuals and homosexuals, and numerous other opposing groups.
The term Borderlands, according to Anzaldúa, refers to the geographical area that is most susceptible to la mezcla [hybridity], neither fully of Mexico nor fully of the United States. She also used this term to identify a growing population that cannot distinguish these invisible "borders," who instead have learned to become a part of both worlds whose cultural expectations they are still expected to abide by.
Each of the essays and poems draws on the author’s life experiences as Chicana and lesbian activist. In both prose and poetry sections, Anzaldúa challenges the conception of a border as a simple divide and ultimately calls for the oppressors, especially those from the Western culture, to nurture active interest in the oppressed and change their attitudes that foster the growth and sustenance of borders.