COMING MARCH 2020:

A MEXICAN STATE OF MIND

“A Mexican State of Mind presents a
refreshing look into the creative voices emerging from Mexican New York  where these unique experiences are shaping our new imaginaries of young Mexican immigrants.”

--José Higuera López, Deputy Director,
Mexican Studies Institute at
The City University of New York
A Mexican State of Mind: New York City and the New Borderlands of Culture explores the cultural and creative lives of the largely young undocumented Mexican population in New York City since Sept. 11, 2001. Inspired by a dialogue between the landmark works of Paul Gilroy and Gloria Anzaldúa, it develops a new analytic framework, the Atlantic Borderlands, which bridges Mexican diasporic experiences in New York City and the black diaspora, not as a comparison but in recognition that colonialism, interracial and interethnic contact through trade, migration, and slavery are connected via capitalist economies and technological developments. This book is based on ten years of fieldwork in  New York City, with members of  a vibrant community of young Mexican migrants who coexist and interact with people from all over the world. It focuses on youth culture including hip hop, graffiti, muralism, labor activism, arts entrepreneurship and collective making.

NEXT Events:

3/12-  Book Launch, The Latinx Project at NYU

POET. SCHOLAR. NOVELIST. WRITER. EDITOR.

 Books by Dr. Melissa Castillo Planas: 

COATLICUE EATS THE APPLE
​ORDER your Copy HERE!

"In Coatlicue Eats the Apple, Melissa Castillo-Garsow introduces us to the poetry of refusal and discovery. By subverting sacred symbols with angsty, humorous rebellion, Castillo-Garsow becomes the iconoclast that we all need. Beware: her poetry is not for us who seek decoration and adornment; her poetry is the mosh pit into which we are accidentally tossed, momentarily lost, and thankfully self-discovered" -Willie Perdomo, The Essential Hits of Shorty Bon Bon

ORDER MANTECA! 

¡MANTECA!: AN ANTHOLOGY OF AFRO-LATINO POETRY

Bringing together some of the biggest names in Latino poetry with talented newcomers, this Anthology is a celebration of a long history of Afro-Latinidad in the United States. It represents three generations of Afro-Latino poetics from across the country and  is  published by Arte Público Press as well as available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
“A welcome addition to the cornucopia of books sharing the poetic voices of the Americas. ¡Manteca!, like its English translation, ‘butter,’ will melt delectably in the mind, creating flavors and nuances to ponder again and again.” — Booklist 

Available NOW! 
​ ​LA VERDAD: AN INTERNATIONAL DIALOGUE ON HIP HOP LATINIDADES

The first volume of its kind, La Verdad features 20 essays about Hip Hop in Latin America with a new focus on the participation of women, indigenous peoples and Afro-descendents. Covering more than a dozen countries and five languages, it is the first book from Ohio State University Press's new Global Latino/a Series.
Available  as e-book, Hardback and Paperback at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
“This volume forges a new path in the critical debates on hip hop by studying the global engagement of Latinos with hip hop, one in which a transnational lens becomes absolutely necessary.—Ignacio Corona, coeditor of Postnational Musical Identities: Cultural Production, Distribution, and Consumption in a Globalized Scenario