The Medicine of Memory: A Mexica Clan in California - Softcover

Murguía, Alejandro

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0292752679 ISBN 13: 9780292752672

Publisher: University of Texas Press, 2002

Synopsis

"People who live in California deny the past," asserts Alejandro Murguía. In a state where "what matters is keeping up with the current trends, fads, or latest computer gizmo," no one has "the time, energy, or desire to reflect on what happened last week, much less what happened ten years ago, or a hundred." From this oblivion of memory, he continues, comes a false sense of history, a deluded belief that the way things are now is the way they have always been.

In this work of creative nonfiction, Murguía draws on memories—his own and his family's reaching back to the eighteenth century—to (re)construct the forgotten Chicano-indigenous history of California. He tells the story through significant moments in California history, including the birth of the mestizo in Mexico, destruction of Indian lifeways under the mission system, violence toward Mexicanos during the Gold Rush, Chicano farm life in the early twentieth century, the Chicano Movement of the 1960s, Chicano-Latino activism in San Francisco in the 1970s, and the current rebirth of Chicano-Indio culture. Rejecting the notion that history is always written by the victors, and refusing to be one of the vanquished, he declares, "This is my California history, my memories, richly subjective and atavistic."

About this title

About the Author:

ALEJANDRO MURGUÍA is Associate Professor in the College of Ethnic Studies at San Francisco State University.

From Library Journal:

A native Californian, American Book Award winner Murguia (ethnic studies, San Francisco State Univ.; Southern Front) traces his own family's history, as well as the long story of Hispanics in America, back to the 18th century. He grew up mostly in the Los Angeles area, lived in Mexico, and took part in the Chicano movement of the 1960s, finally moving to San Francisco in the 1970s. In this "creative nonfiction," he shares some wild stories of his family and his youth, giving us a zesty taste of Latino life. Not claiming to be a historian, he offers his personal take on significant events in the history of Chicano-Indio culture in California, such as the lynching of a Mexican woman during the California Gold Rush, the missions and their effect on Indian culture, and the activist 1970s in San Francisco. Murguia's spirited writing makes the past and his family come alive for the reader. Recommended for all libraries with collections in Hispanic culture, especially those in California.
Gwen Gregory, Colorado Coll. Lib., Colorado Springs
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Texas Press
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0292752679
• ISBN 13: 9780292752672
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 256