Out Of The Barrio: Toward A New Politics Of Hispanic Assimilation

by Linda Chavez

Overview

Are Hispanics “making it”—achieving the American dream following the pattern of other ethnic groups? This controversial book shatters the myth that 20 million His panics—fast becoming the nation's largest minority—are a permanent underclass. Chavez considers the radical implications for bilingual education, immigration policy, and affirmative action.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780465054312
Publisher:	Basic Books
Publication date:	11/11/1992
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	224
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	1530L (what's this?)

About the Author

Linda Chavez, a senior fellow of the Manhattan Institute, is president of the Center for Equal Opportunity, a nonprofit public policy research organization in Washington, D.C. She writes frequently for such publications as the Wall Street Journal, Fortune, and USA Today and is the author of Out of the Barrio, An Unlikely Conservative, and Betrayal. She lives in Purcellville, Virginia.

Table of Contents

Preface to the Paperback Edition ix
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction 1
The Bilingual Battleground 9
Hispanics and the Voting Rights Act 39
The Power Brokers 61
The Backlash 85
An Emerging Middle Class 101
The Immigrants 121
The Puerto Rican Exception 139
Toward a New Politics of Hispanic Assimilation 161
Notes 173
Index 197

What People are Saying About This

Dinesh D'Souza

"Sober, eloquent, and politically incorrect."

Editorial Reviews

Sober, eloquent, and politically incorrect. —Washington Post Book World

Dinesh D'Souza

The explosive theory that Hispanics are keeping themselves in the barrio by refusing to assimilate into the majority white culture is covered unevenly and, despite a flurry of statistics, at times unscientifically. While Chavez, a former director of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, starts out with the basic premise that today's Hispanics should be treated like the immigrants of yesteryear and be forced to forsake their language and culture for their own good when inconvenient, she argues the reverse midway through the book. She presents an accurate and well-cited discussion of bilingual eduation, a cornerstone issue of the Hispanic community, but then drops the academic analysis to press unpopular views with little foundation. For more complete coverage of bilingual education from an educator in the field, a preferable choice is Rosalie Porter's Forked Tongue ( LJ 5/15/90). Unfortunately, since little has been written solely on Hispanics as an ethnic minority, this may fill gaps in some collections.-- Sharon Roman, Carroll Cty. P.L., Westminster, Md.

Library Journal

Chavez, a senior fellow of the Manhattan Institute and former executive director of the US Commission on Civil Rights, distinguishes between native-born Hispanics and immigrants, documents the progress and achievement of second-generation Hispanics, and considers the implications for bilingual education, immigration policy, and affirmative action. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Booknews