The Latino Studies Reader Culture, Economy, and Society

Focusing on the culture, politics and society of the distinctive Latino communities in the United States, The Latino Studies Reader draws on the most interesting recent work from Latino scholars and social critics in a comparative perspective. Representing over 10% of the population in the United States, and growing faster than any other ethnic group, it is now more important than ever to examine the issues of Latinos who are predicted to become the largest ethnic-minority group by the year 2009. Conventional theories of 'race' and 'race relations', with its exclusive black/white focus, present serious theoretical problems as applied to Latinos. Therefore, Darder and Torres use class analysis as the major theoretical perspective in order to understand Latinos through social scientific theoretical and conceptual ideas. To reflect the variety of home countries and divergent socio-economic backgrounds of Latinos, The Latino Studies Reader draws on the experiences of Chicanos, Puerto Ricans, Cubanos, Caribbeans, Central and South Americans living in the United States. The volume is organized around four major themes: culture and histories; cultural politics; gender, sexuality and power; and labor and politics.

Antonia Darder is Associate Professor of Education at the Claremont Graduate School. Her other books include Culture and Power in the Classroom, 1991 and Culture and Difference: Critical Perspectives on the Bicultural Experience in the U. S. 1995 both published by Bergin and Garvey. She was born in Puerto Rico.

Rodolfo D. Torres is Professor of Political Science at the Graduate Centre for Public Policy at California State University - Long Beach. He was born in East Los Angeles. Darder and Torres have also co-edited Latinos and Education, 1997, Routledge.