Does the U.S. Turn Smart Mexicans Into Stupid Americans?

The Mexican is currently in the rancho, scheming about how to get close enough to Donald Trump to smear a bean burrito in his face . . . HA! But I did want to share two cosas. A couple of weeks back, I published a letter from Dickhead In Denver, who asked eight pendejo questions, everything from why Mexicans are so fat to why Mexicans aren't good in math. Your humble paisa easily knocked him down, but so did many of ustedes in letters sent to me—chingao!

There was one I wish I could quote directly, but let's just say an executive from a major American company told me they hire more engineers from Mexico than the United States and showed me the numbers to prove it—chingao! The following letter is one I'm allowed to share in its entirety:

DEAR MEXICAN: I can't address some of the B.S. addressed by this individual so aptly named, but here's something: I taught as an intern, and then as a substitute teacher in Albuquerque, almost exclusively at Dolores Gonzalez Elementary by the BioPark for two years. The kids from Mexico were better in math, science and language skills (Spanish, of course) than local kids, and in one of the classes in which I acted as a teaching assistant while an unpaid intern, there were five of them who were placed in advanced classes the following year. Where the kids got screwed up was a threefold thing: 1) Dealing with “cooperative learning” crap. They were used to traditional, old-school methods with the teacher in front of the class and the kids listening, taking notes, etc. When you broke them up into groups, that's when problems began. 2) Learning a new language. 3) Pressures from IDIOT local Hispanic/Latino kids who ridiculed them and sometimes beat them up because they were diligently trying to learn and pressures at home from parents who were also dealing with a number of issues. Le tengo odio a mitoteros/mentirosos como Dickhead—”todo el dia, tuercen mis palabras . . .” (Salmos 56.5).

'Burqe Babe

DEAR BABE: For those who don't habla: at the end, the maestra said, “I hate nosy idiots/liars like Dickhead—'All day long, they twist my words . . .' (Psalms 56:5).” Biblical retribution? Chingao! See, America? Mexicans come to this country all perfect and precious—and it's this country that destroys them by making them become Americans.

* * * * *

BUY THIS BOOK! #FuckCancer: The True Story of How Robert the Bold Kicked Cancer's Ass is an awesome new book by Robert Flores, a lifelong butcher from SanTana who decided to tell his tale after surviving Stage IV colon cancer. #FuckCancer is not only the latest entry in the lengthy bookshelf of cancer literature, but it also belongs in Chicano studies classrooms. Because in the Butcher, you find everything we want our community to turn into: a fighter. A survivor. Someone who's proud of where he's from. Brown and down. And a pioneer: Robert is brave enough to tell his story, to become a writer despite being in his mid-50s and never having written a “professional” story, let alone a full-length book. May this book inspire people who want to be writers but are afraid to do so . . . to do so. Follow him on Twitter (@foxflores) and buy his book at roberttheboldstore.etsy.com!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *