“Me llamo Augustina Juarez. Soy de Guanajuato, Mexico, pero ahora vivo en el Valle de la Luna en California. My boss doesn’t like me to speak Spanish, pero no me importa. I don’t care. I need to speak before I run out of time.”
Thus begins “Pages from the Journal of la Mexicana,” my historical fiction short story from the newly published anthology “Somos Xicanas” by Riot of Roses Publishing House.
“Somos Xicanas” explores the Xicana identity past and present, delivering messages about race, culture, class, economy, sexuality and spirituality within historical, political, and personal contexts.
The book features poetry and prose from 80 writers, including acclaimed author Sandra Cisneros, first female President of the National Association of Chicano Studies Irene I. Blea, and United States Poet Laureate Ada Limon, another voice from Sonoma Valley. Needless to say, I am humbled and grateful that my story was chosen to share the ink.
The main character of my story, who takes the name of my maternal grandmother, is a young woman who moves to the Valley of the Moon with her father in the late 1800s. He works at the hospital in Glen Ellen tending horses while she cleans the houses of the village’s white women.
Augustina writes in her journal about the people, places and experiences she encounters as a newcomer to this land. Her mystical sense guides her through natural calamities as well as cultural condemnation. It warns her to consult a curandera (healer) in the hills of the Mayacamas Mountains when she is feeling susto (fear). Her spiritual consciousness also helps her foresee the eventual rectification of racial injustices.
“Because I am not white and have little money, I am regarded as a lesser person. Es una tormenta de injusticia. Land of the free? This country persists in its practice of unofficial slavery. The slaves just changed from los Africanos to los Mexicanos. They have forgotten that this land was part of Mexico not that long ago. They are the newcomers!
With the current threats against immigrants in our country, I was reminded of a documentary I saw about the San Francisco residents who fled the city following the 1906 earthquake. Traveling by ferries and steamers to Oakland, Berkeley, Sausalito and, by train, to Marin and Sonoma Counties, people of various races, skin colors and languages who had been displaced were not always welcomed. Refugees from only 40 miles away were treated as outsiders. The characters may change but the story remains the same. This inspired my account of Augustina’s response.
Augustina manages to calm down and draw upon the inner voice of ancient wisdom. “A prophetic sense tells me that this struggle with the Anglos will persist until California is reclaimed by los Mexicanos. It may take another 100 years or more, but this is one of those things I just know.”
Forward a century, the 2023 Hispanic/Latino population in California of 15.76 million has now surpassed the number of white residents at 12.96 million, according to Korhonen, Veera, Statista, Oct. 17, 2024.
Riot of Roses Publishing House, established in autumn of 2021 by author/founder Brenda Vaca, states its purpose is to amplify the stories of historically silenced voices. It is Xicana-owned and focused on female writers. My appreciation goes to editor Luz Schweig who helped me clarify form and language while allowing me to tell the story of a woman who never existed but lives in the hearts of hundreds if not thousands of Mexicanas.
Copies of Somos Xicanas are available at Readers’ Books and at www.riotofrosespublishinghouse.com.
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