Tag Archives: racism fiction

The Cholo Tree

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Victor is a fourteen-year old Latino kid who cannot escape the societal stereotype that he must be in a gang. He even gets this from his own mother, who states “Do you know what a stereotype you are? You’re the existential Chicano” as he is released from the hospital. He’s wrapped in bandages, has a sling on his arm, and barely remembers being shot. He denies that he’s a cholo, which his mother accuses him of.

And it’s not just his mother who thinks he’s a gangbanger. He gets the same reaction from his sociology teacher who sent him to a teach-in on gang violence. Even other kids at school think he’s in a gang, and Victor wonders if it is because of the clothes he wears.

Victor thinks that most everyone is racist. “They see a brown kid, they see a banger.”

Fortunately, he has an art teacher who encourages him to apply to art schools. He has a girlfriend who is super smart and also encourages him. But in spite of their support, he struggles to overcome society’s expectations for him. 

Chicano writer Daniel Chacon explores art, death, ethnicity and racism in The Cholo Tree.

Midnight Without A Moon

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This gritty story of thirteen-year-old, Rose Lee Carter, living in Mississippi in 1955 touches the heart and soul of life for colored people in the south at the dawn of the civil rights movement. Rose Lee lives with her grandparents who are sharecroppers on a cotton plantation. Rose Lee is stuck in the south at a time when friends and family, including her mama, are fleeing to the north to escape the racial tension of the south. With the murder of Emmett Till as the catalyst for change, Rose Lee must decide whether her future will be in the north or in the south. Jackson’s skillfully provides the historical backdrop of racial tension in the south and tells a story of hope, courage and change. Jackson’s writing is lyrical and descriptive and captivates the reader with imagery. This historical fiction work is a must have for middle school collections.