Description
Book SynopsisLatinos in the U.S. and Latin Americans are a combination of diverse populations that differ on a range of factors including length of time in the country, migration background, ethnicity, geographical location, socio-economic status, and so on. The reader will find perspectives of those of us who live in the borderlandsthat is, those of us whom Gloria Anzaldúa identified as Mestizas, who inhabit the intersticios, the spaces in between souls, minds, identities, and geographies. This book assists new generations of Latino/as and of those involved in Latino Culture and Latin America in understanding how the colonization of the Americas is still tied to current issues of migration from the South to the North and how mental health practices have been created and maintained from the wound of coloniality. It offers a rich and alternative foundation for approaching trauma, identity, and resilience through the integration of a decolonization paradigm, borderlands theory, and social justice app
Trade Review“Therapy, at best, is about transformation. Dr. Hernandez-Wolfe's brilliant book provides nepanthla, the territory for transformation—an in-between space in which, through individual and collective reflection, we can see ourselves and each other more clearly. By showing how macro-societal processes are enacted in the micro-processes of everyday life, she challenges taken-for-granted practices and offers pathways for new therapeutic action. I highly recommend this book for clinicians of all levels of experience.” -- Kaeth Weingarten, PhD, Harvard Medical School
"Woven with innovative thinking and compelling case examples, this book deeply engages the reader. With the author's searing honesty and her keen capacities to crisscross many worlds, your therapeutic work will be forever amplified and changed." -- Janine Roberts, PhD, Professor emerita, University of Massachussetts
"The author weaves an exciting tapestry of contemporary perspectives that are relevant to therapeutic work in the globalized contexts of patriarchy and coloniality. Intriguing case studies anchor an argument for fluidity of thought and community-based collaborative practices. This is essential reading for all who are taking up the challenges of liberation, decolonization, and the reconnection of humanity with the rest of nature." -- Tod Sloan, PhD, co-editor; "Journal for Social Action in Counseling and Psychology"
A Borderlands View on Latinos, Latin Americans, and Decolonization: Rethinking Mental Health... illustrate[s] two important facets to multicultural understanding, particularly within a mental health context. One facet is knowledge of one’s clients’ cultural history, past and present, and how this is likely to impact them psychologically, understanding, of course, that individuals vary greatly. Another important aspect is the acknowledgment of one’s own culture and history, especially where they intersect with those of clients. * PsycCRITIQUES *
Table of ContentsPreface Acknowledgements Chapter 1. Borderland Experiences: Migrations and Crosslinks Chapter 2. A New Musical Score, a Horizon, and Possibilities for Meaning Making: A Decolonization Paradigm Chapter 3. Nepantla: A Borderland Epistemology Chapter 4. Trauma, Resistance/Resilience, and the Colonial Difference Chapter 5. Just and Loving Relationships Heal Chapter 6. Thoughts Unfinished Appendix A References Index About the Author