March 1, 2018
Ramos is a notable author (Dying To Cross), Emmy Award-winning journalist, and syndicated columnist. He is also an immigrant. In 1983, Ramos moved to the United States from Mexico as a student. In the author's newest book, he draws on the experiences in which he has confronted racism. One troublesome example was during the 2015 presidential campaign, when then-candidate Donald Trump kicked Ramos out of a press conference in Dubuque, IA, because of his Mexican heritage. In writing this book, Ramos is determined not to be quiet like Trump told him to be in Iowa. In fact, in each chapter, Ramos examines the growing sense of fear spreading across the country against the "stranger" from other countries. He explains that Trump's words and actions directed toward immigrants from south of the U.S. border has made it permissible to transform this fear into hatred against others. At the end of the book, Ramos calls on his journalist colleagues to elevate their craft and to speak out against injustice perpetuated by those in power. VERDICT An insightful read about prejudice against Latinx individuals in America. Readers of politics and culture will find Ramos's book enlightening.--Susan E. Montgomery, Rollins Coll., Winter Park, FL
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January 15, 2018
The celebrated Mexican-American journalist takes on the anti-immigration tenor of the Trump era.On Aug. 25, 2015, Donald Trump had the author removed from a press conference in Iowa, telling him, "go back to Univision." Already well-known for his role as anchor at that network, Ramos (Take a Stand: Lessons from Rebels, 2016, etc.) was thrust further into the spotlight following the incident, an experience that also led him to further soul-searching regarding his status as a legal immigrant in an increasingly anti-immigrant political and social landscape. Here, the author attempts to synthesize his thoughts about our present state of affairs and how, "to many people, I represent the Other." The concept of the Other recurs throughout the book, which contains much similar material to his previous one and suffers from repetition and uneven organization near the end. Nonetheless, Ramos' message is powerful and vital. "Almost all of us here are either immigrants or the descendants of foreigners," writes the author, "and that has always helped us to cross borders and exceed the limits of what we thought was possible." In brief chapters, some of which have been previously published or reworked, Ramos uses both personal storytelling and concrete data to demonstrate the absolute necessity of immigrants to the success of the U.S. as a nation. (In strictly economic terms, one estimate notes that immigrants "pay $90 billion in taxes, while using only $5 billion in public benefits.") Of course, in the current climate of fake news, facts and figures are often ignored or distorted--something Ramos fully recognizes--but he diligently hammers them home anyway. Among other topics in these essays, the author discusses the proposed border wall, "the geography of stupidity"; Barack Obama's lamentable deportation track record; his disappointment with the Latino voter turnout in the 2016 election; the tenuous status of undocumented workers (he dedicates the book to "the Dreamers, my heroes"); and the prospects for his children's future.Repetitive in places but not fatally so--a forceful, readable manifesto.
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February 1, 2018
Ramos, an Emmy-winning journalist, syndicated columnist, and Univision anchor, attained even greater visibility in August 2015 when presidential candidate Donald Trump had him thrown out of a press conference in Iowa. Ramos tells the full story of that confrontation by way of launching this timely and clarifying mix of candid memoir and sharp commentary about what it means to be a Latino immigrant in the time of Trump. Ramos reflects on why, even though he has lived in the U.S. for 35 years and has become a citizen and a father, he still feels like a stranger. He recounts his difficult decision to leave Mexico as a fledgling journalist to escape state censorship, asserts journalism's role as a public service, and expresses his love for the U.S., an experiment . . . based on the extraordinary process of converting others' into us.' Under Trump, this inclusiveness is grievously imperiled. Decrying discrimination and deportation and the tragic predicament of the courageous DREAMers, he calls for resistance against the erosion of freedom. Ramos also celebrates Latino lives and finds reasons for optimism.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)