This volume examines how the field of Chicana/o studies has developed to become an area of interest to scholars far beyond the United States and Spain. For this reason, the volume includes contributions by a range of international scholars and takes the concept of place as a unifying paradigm. As a way of overcoming borders that are both physical and metaphorical, it seeks to reflect the diversity and range of current scholarship in Chicana/o studies while simultaneously highlighting the diverse and constantly evolving nature of Chicana/o identities and cultures. Various critical and theoretical approaches are evident, from eco-criticism and autoethnography in the first section, to the role of fiction and visual art in exposing injustice in section two, to the discussion of transnational and transcultural exchange with reference to issues as diverse as the teaching of Chicana/o studies in Russia and the relevance of Anzaldúa’s writings to post 9/11 U.S. society.

The Routledge Handbook of Chicana/o Studies is a unique interdisciplinary resource for students, libraries, and researchers interested in the largest and most rapidly growing racial-ethnic community in the United States and elsewhere which can either be identified as Chicano, Latino, Hispanic, or Mexican-American. Structured around seven comprehensive themes, the volume is for students of American studies, the Social Sciences, and the Humanities. The volume is organized around seven critical domains in Chicana/o Studies: Chicana/o History and Social Movements Borderlands, Global Migrations, Employment, and Citizenship Cultural Production in Global and Local Settings Chicana/o Identities Schooling, Language, and Literacy Violence, Resistance, and Empowerment International Perspectives The Handbook will stress the importance of the historical origins of the Chicana/o Studies field. Starting from myth of origins, Aztlán, alleged cradle of the Chicana/o people lately substantiated by the findings of archaeology and anthropology, over Spanish/Indigenous relations until the present time. Essays will explore cultural and linguistic hybridism and showcase artistic practices (visual arts, music, and dance) through popular (folklore) or high culture achievements (museums, installations) highlighting the growth of a critical perspective grounded on key theoretical formulations including borderlands theories, intersectionalities, critical race theory, and cultural analysis.

The Making of Chicana/o Studies traces the philosophy and historical development of the field of Chicana/o studies from precursor movements to the Civil Rights era to today, focusing its lens on the political machinations in higher education that sought to destroy the discipline. As a renowned leader, activist, scholar, and founding member of the movement to establish this curriculum in the California State University system, which serves as a model for the rest of the country, Rodolfo F. Acuña has, for more than forty years, battled the trend in academia to deprive this group of its academic presence. The book assesses the development of Chicana/o studies (an area of studies that has even more value today than at its inception)--myths about its epistemological foundations have remained uncontested. Acuña sets the record straight, challenging those in the academy who would fold the discipline into Latino studies, shadow it under the dubious umbrella of ethnic studies, or eliminate it altogether. Building the largest Chicana/o studies program in the nation was no easy feat, especially in an atmosphere of academic contention. In this remarkable account, Acuña reveals how California State University, Northridge, was instrumental in developing an area of study that offers more than 166 sections per semester, taught by 26 tenured and 45 part-time instructors. He provides vignettes of successful programs across the country and offers contemporary educators and students a game plan--the mechanics for creating a successful Chicana/o studies discipline--and a comprehensive index of current Chicana/o studies programs nationwide. Latinas/os, of which Mexican Americans are nearly seventy percent, comprise a complex sector of society projected to be just shy of thirty percent of the nation's population by 2050. The Making of Chicana/o Studies identifies what went wrong in the history of Chicana/o studies and offers tangible solutions for the future.

This is the first interdisciplinary collection of articles addressing the unique history of Chicana women. From a diverse range of perspectives, a new generation of Chicana scholars here chronicles the previously undocumented rich tapestry of Chicanas' lives over the last three centuries. Focusing on how women have grappled with political subordination and sexual exploitation, the contributors confront the complex intersection of class, race, ethnicity, and gender that defines the Chicana experience in America. The book analyzes the ways that oppressive power relations and resistance to domination have shaped Chicana history, exploring subjects as diverse as sexual violence against Amerindian women during the Spanish conquest of California to contemporary Chicanas' efforts to construct feminist cultural discourses. The volume ends with a provocative dialogue among the contributors about the challenges, frustrations, and obstacles that face Chicana scholars, and the voices heard here testify to the vibrant state of Chicano scholarship. Trenchant and wide-ranging, this collection is essential reading for understanding the dynamics of feminism and multiculturalism.

This collaborative book explores the artistic and aesthetic development of shojo, or girl, manga and discusses the significance of both shojo manga and the concept of shojo, or girl culture. It features contributions from manga critics, educators, and researchers from both manga’s home country of Japan and abroad, looking at shojo and shojo manga’s influence both locally and globally. Finally, it presents original interviews of shojo manga-ka, or artists, who discuss their work and their views on this distinct type of popular visual culture.

United States History from a Chicano Perspective provides students with engaging and enlightening readings that introduce them to contemporary Mesoamerica and illuminate the ways the past and present are constantly interacting within this landscape. The anthology highlights the themes of survival, resilience, and resistance, showing how Mexicans and Chicanos continue to thrive despite a history marked with grave adversity and seemingly insurmountable struggles. The readings within the anthology trace the impacts of colonialism on Mexicans and Mexican Americans and also demonstrate how Chicanos have endured by embracing indigenous traditions and developing their own unique culture. Particular selections explore Mexican religious healing practices, the reclamation of Mesoamerican foods, identity construction in representations of Malinche, the reformation of the concept of "home" by queering Aztlán, and more. These selections examine the intersections of race, gender, and sexuality, demonstrating a robust spectrum of diversity within the Mexican and Chicano experience. United States History from a Chicano Perspective provides students with a unique lens through which to view and analyze U.S. history. It is an ideal supplementary resource for courses in U.S. history, multicultural studies, and any course with emphasis on the Chicano experience. Angélica Yañez, Ph.D. is an assistant professor in the Multicultural Studies Department at Palomar College. She earned her doctorate degree in ethnic studies from the University of California, San Diego.

The largest social movement by people of Mexican descent in the U.S. to date, the Chicano Movement of the 1960s and 70s linked civil rights activism with a new, assertive ethnic identity: Chicano Power! Beginning with the farmworkers' struggle led by César Chávez and Dolores Huerta, the Movement expanded to urban areas throughout the Southwest, Midwest and Pacific Northwest, as a generation of self-proclaimed Chicanos fought to empower their communities. Recently, a new generation of historians has produced an explosion of interesting work on the Movement. The Chicano Movement: Perspectives from the Twenty-First Century collects the various strands of this research into one readable collection, exploring the contours of the Movement while disputing the idea of it being one monolithic group. Bringing the story up through the 1980s, The Chicano Movement introduces students to the impact of the Movement, and enables them to expand their understanding of what it means to be an activist, a Chicano, and an American.