Overflowing with powerful testimonies of six female community activists who have lived and worked in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago, Chicanas of 18th Street reveals the convictions and approaches of those organizing for social reform. In chronicling a pivotal moment in the history of community activism in Chicago, the women discuss how education, immigration, religion, identity, and acculturation affected the Chicano movement. Chicanas of 18th Street underscores the hierarchies of race, gender, and class while stressing the interplay of individual and collective values in the development of community reform. Highlighting the women's motivations, initiatives, and experiences in politics during the 1960s and 1970s, these rich personal accounts reveal the complexity of the Chicano movement, conflicts within the movement, and the importance of teatro and cultural expressions to the movement. Also detailed are vital interactions between members of the Chicano movement with leftist and nationalist community members and the influence of other activist groups such as African Americans and Marxists. | Cover Title Page Copyright Contents List of Illustrations Preface List of Abbreviations, Organizations, and Programs Chicago Movement Time Line Introduction: Second City Mexicans Homecoming, 1997 A Legacy of Struggle Living the Life I Was Meant to Lead Una Chicana en la lucha A Woman of My Time Defending My People and My Culture A Proud Daughter of a Mexican Worker Social Action Women of 18th Street: Our Preliminary Assessment References Contributors | Society of Professors of Education Book Award, 2013. Honorable Mention, Best History/Political Book-English category, Latino Literacy Now's International Latino Book Awards, 2012. — Society of Professors of Education
Society of Professors of Education Book Award, 2013. Honorable Mention, Best History/Political Book-English category, Latino Literacy Now's International Latino Book Awards, 2012. — Latino Literacy Now's International Latino Book Awards
| Leonard G. Ramírez is the past director of the Latin American Recruitment and Educational Services program at the University of Illinois at Chicago.